Town and Burnley face an FA Cup fourth-round replay at Turf Moor following an entertaining 0-0 draw at Portman Road. The top-scoring sides from League One and the Championship were unable to find a goal between them with Marcus Harness coming close for Town when he hit the bar in the first half.
Boss Kieran McKenna made eight changes with only skipper Sam Morsy, George Edmundson and Lee Evans remaining from the team which beat Morecambe 4-0 on Tuesday.
Vaclav Hladky came in in goal behind a back four of Janoi Donacien, Luke Woolfenden, Edmundson and Greg Leigh.
Morsy and Evans were the central midfield pairing with Kayden Jackson on the right, Sone Aluko in the middle and Harness the left behind central striker George Hirst.
Town named a strong nine-man bench featuring top scorer Conor Chaplin, Nathan Broadhead, Kyle Edwards, Massimo Luongo and Cameron Humphreys.
Harry Clarke was ineligible having played for Stoke earlier in the competition, while neither Leif Davis nor Wes Burns were in the squad.
Burnley boss Vincent Kompany made seven changes from the team which beat West Brom 2-1 a week ago yesterday.
Scott Twine, who signed for the Clarets from the MK Dons in the summer, was handed his full debut, while new signing Ameen Al-Dakhil made his Clarets bow and fellow recent recent recruits Lyle Foster and Hjalmar Ekdal were among the subs.
Town were first to threaten in the second minute when Jackson was sent away on the right and crossed low for Hirst, who slid in but sent the ball the wrong side of the post under pressure from Al-Dakhil.
Moments later, Hirst was almost gifted the ball inside the Clarets’ box by Charlie Taylor but visitors keeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell was quickly off his line to clear the under-hit backpass.
The Blues maintained their strong start and went close to going in front in the fifth minute when, after Hirst had been stopped in his tracks just inside the area, Harness curled a shot over Peacock-Farrell which scuffed the top of the bar.
On 10, Peacock-Farrell punched a Leigh cross away off the top of Hirst’s head, then two minutes later, Jordan Beyer was shown the game’s first yellow card for pulling back Aluko, the second time the Town forward had been stopped in that manner by the Lancastrians.
Burnley, who had struggled to get on the ball, managed their first shot in the 20th minute when it fell for Jay Rodriguez on the left of the box but the one-time England international shot well into the Sir Bobby Robson Stand.
A minute later, Rodriguez won a free-kick 25 yards out to the right and Twine struck a powerful shot straight at Hladky.
But it was still mainly Town and on 24 Morsy clipped a cross into the area for Hirst, who knocked it down but no teammate read it and the ball was cleared. Two minutes later, Harness was yellow-carded for a late challenge on Al-Dakhil, although the former Pompey man looked as if he’d lost his footing rather than making a challenge.
As the game passed the half-hour mark, Darko Churlinov did well on the left and cut inside to Rodriguez, but the former Southampton man’s effort, which looked to be going wide anyway, went behind off Donacien.
On 33, Jackson sent over a cross-shot from the right which threatened to dip under Peacock-Farrell’s bar and the Northern Irishman was forced to tip over. From the corner, the ball was played to Morsy on the edge of the area, the Egyptian international crossed and Leigh flicked a header wide.
Five minutes later, the Blues threatened again, Hirst playing in Morsy on the left of the area from where the skipper’s effort from a tight angle was forced behind.
Referee Tom Nield played an advantage in the build-up as the already-booked Beyer bodychecked Jackson but surprisingly took no action against the on-loan Borussia Mönchengladbach man, who could count himself fortunate not to have been shown his second yellow card of the afternoon.
In the single minute of injury time, Clarets skipper Jack Cork played the ball straight to Harness in space midway inside the Burnley half but the Blues forward ran into trouble on the edge of the box when he ought to have taken an earlier shot or moved the ball on to Town players to his left and right.
The half-time whistle was greeted by applause from Blues fans, their team having been on top against the Championship’s top side.
The Blues had been in control for much of the half with Town having created most of the game’s chances with Harness having come closest when he hit the bar and Jackson not far away with his effort which Peacock-Farrell flicked over the woodwork.
Burnley had put in a scrappy display for the most part, particularly at the back, but while occasionally showing signs of the threat they have posed up front in the Championship this season.
The visitors were first to threaten after the restart, Churlinov having been found on space on the left of the box but the North Macedonian was closed down quickly and Donacien blocked. From the corner, Taylor claimed he was fouled by Jackson but referee Nield showed no interest.
Burnley had started the second half much more brightly than they had ended the first and on 52 Nathan Tella worked himself space on the edge of the box before hitting a shot which Hladky tipped over.
Within a minute, Hladky was in action again, getting back to his goal and saving a shot from Rodriguez from distance with the striker taking a sharp effort at goal as he sought to catch the keeper out of his ground.
In the 54th minute, Town won a corner on the left, which Burnley defended poorly, the ball dropping to Woolfenden, whose heel-flick at the far post failed to trouble Peacock-Farrell.
But Burnley were continuing to look more dangerous than in the first half and on 59 Twine struck a low shot just wide.
Seconds afterwards, both sides made a triple change. Burnley swapped Twine, Churlinov and Samuel Bastien for Josh Brownhill, Josh Cullen and Anass Zaroury, while Chaplin, Ladapo and Broadhead took over from Harness, Hirst and Aluko for Town.
Chaplin was quickly into the action, sending Jackson away on the right from where the former Accrington man sent over a low cross which was cleared ahead of Hirst.
Burnley gave South African international Foster his debut in the 67th minute for Rodriguez. Four minutes later, Morsy was booked for a foul on Cork.
The Clarets continued to look the more likely scorers of the game’s first goal and in the 77th minute, sub Zaroury belted a loose ball across the face and wide from the left of the box with referee Nield awarding a corner much to the frustration of the Town defenders. Hladky turned the flag-kick over from under his bar.
A minute later, Town gave midfielder Luongo his second debut for the Blues for captain Morsy.
As the game moved into its scheduled final 10 minutes, the Town crowd began to increase the volume and on 81 Leigh beat his man on the left sent over a cross to the far post to Jackson, whose effort deflected behind.
A minute later, Broadhead brought the ball forward to the edge of the box before trying to play in Ladapo when he might have shot but the ex-Rotherham striker had strayed offside.
On 85 Edwards took over from Jackson, who had been a threat for Town throughout down the right. Three minutes later, Cork was booked for hauling back Luongo as the Australian made a strong run forward.
Town were ending the game the stronger and on 88, Evans sent over a free-kick from the right which Ladapo just failed to get his head to. The ball ran loose but was cleared before a Blues player could seize on it. Two minutes later, Woolfenden headed over from a Town free-kick on the left.
As the game moved into four minutes of injury time, Foster scuffed a weak effort through to Hladky.
Town almost won it in fortuitous circumstances soon afterwards when Chaplin turned on the right and sent over a cross which took a deflection and looped under the bar but Peacock-Farrell got back on his line to palm it away and claim.
Referee Nield ended one of the more memorable goalless draw soon afterwards with Town fans happy with the manner in which their team had fared against the Championship’s runaway leaders.
Having been bettered by the Blues in the first half, the Clarets improved after the break and tested Hladky on a couple of occasions without ever overworking the Town keeper.
The Blues ended the game on top and might well have grabbed a winner in the latter stages and can be proud of their efforts against a team which looks destined for the Premier League.
The teams, who will meet again at Turf Moor in the midweek after the Cambridge match, will both go into the hat for the fifth round draw - Town for the first time since 2007 - which takes place will be broadcast live on BBC One on Monday during The One Show from 7pm.
Town: Hladky, Donacien, Woolfenden, Edmundson, Jackson (Edwards 85), Evans, Morsy (c) (Luongo 78), Leigh, Aluko (Broadhead 60), Harness (Chaplin 60), Hirst (Ladapo 60). Unused: Walton, Burgess, Vincent-Young, Humphreys.
Burnley: Peacock-Farrell, Taylor, Cork (c), Rodriguez (Foster 67), Twine (Brownhill 59), Da Silva, Tella (Roberts 90), Bastien (Zaroury 59), Churlinov (Cullen 59), Al-Dakhil, Beyer. Unused: Capser, Barnes, Ekdal, Maatsen. Referee: Tom Nield (West Yorkshire). Att: 25,420 (Burnley: 1,581).