Former Clarets' boss Sean Dyche honours his promise to visit Burnley pub named in his honour

And yesterday former Clarets boss Sean Dyche delivered on that promise when he walked through the doors of the Royal Dyche pub in Burnley... to a hero's welcome.

Delighted landlady Justine Lorriman said: "I have wanted him to come here for so long, so it just felt surreal.

"We were planning a 'q and a' session but Sean didn't really need to introduce himself to anyone, he went round chatting to people who wanted to thank him and shake his hand."

Dyche vowed to visit the pub in March after he was jokingly presented with a 'Most Incognito Regular' award by Justine.

Justine had been trying to get the Clarets boss to visit the Yorkshire Street establishment ever since she re-named the bar in his honour in 2018.

The pub held its very own customer awards two years ago, and, when Justine knew there was a chance she'd be bumping into Dyche at the Burnley FC in the Community awards evening, she couldn't resist taking along his very own specially engraved statuette and cheekily presenting him with it.

But just weeks later the town was sent into shock when the popular Clarets boss was sacked.

Expressing her own shock and upset at the news at the time Justine vowed that as long she owned the pub the Royal Dyche name would stay in recognition of what the football manager did for Burnley.

Dyche, who would have celebrated 10 years in charge in October, had twice led the Clarets to promotion to the Premier League, and a return to European football after half a century.

Justine added: "We gave him a tour of the pub and he was very impressed with it and all the Burnley memorabilia we have.