Burnley manager Sean Dyche has claimed that his side were unfortunate not to take all three points in their meeting with Watford following an "absolutely outstanding" second-half display.

The Clarets were given a mountain to climb when Jeff Hendrick was shown a red card for his challenge on Jose Holebas six minutes in - the earliest red card awarded in the Premier League this season.

Burnley were ultimately punished by their opponents after conceding to two headers prior to the interval, but they responded well and had a route back into the game 12 minutes from time when Ashley Barnes scored from the spot.

There was to be no comeback in the end, but Dyche believes that his side showed enough to end their poor run of form on the road, which now stands at one point collected from a possible 33 since earning promotion back to the top tier.

"I don't usually overpraise the side but I thought they were fantastic, particularly in the second half. 11 versus 11, with the way we performed today, we would have probably won the game," he told reporters.

"The early blow of getting a man sent off but then another blow before half time, the mentality to see through that and still respond to the challenge and still take the game on, to try and win it, I thought was absolutely outstanding."

Asked about the red-card decision, Dyche added: "It's a tough one. I think in the heat of the moment, the referee is under pressure to give it. When I look back on it, there's minimal physical contact but let's make it clear, his foot hits the top of the ball. But what can the referee do nowadays? I think he has to send him off."

Burnley have now lost three of their last five league outings, winning the other two, to find themselves 12th in the table.