STAN Ternent today faced up to the fact that Burnley are in a battle for survival near the bottom of the Second Division after a disastrous run of results.

But he vowed to put things right and make relegation thoughts a thing of the past.

"Are we in a relegation fight at the moment? Of course we are," said the Burnley boss after the latest stunning defeat at Turf Moor.

"With 24 games to go we find ourselves down among the dead men.

"It is a very difficult period at the moment for the players and everyone connected with Burnley Football Club but there's no magic formula.

"We've just got to roll our sleeves up and battle through it."

To a degree, Ternent's options are restricted by injuries and a lack of major cash in the transfer market.

But he pledged: "It's vital that we dig in and I will try to do something about it.

"It wasn't a classic against Northampton but they got a rebound and scored and one goal was always going to make the difference.

"I thought in the first half we were okay. It was a pretty scrappy match but there wasn't a lot of quarter asked or given.

"There was very little room to play in so the first goal was always going to be important and unfortunately for us it was them who got it.

"They defended deep and made it very difficult for us and we didn't get the break we were looking for.

"Nevertheless, we've got to dig in and keep battling away.

"The players need all the help they can get, the club needs all the help it can get. But we'll get there eventually." Ternent was pleased by new man Ally Pickering's debut, despite the difficult circumstances, and he refused to condemn Matty Heywood for his error which contributed to the second goal.

"Ally Pickering was excellent. I know he's a quality player and he'll be a big plus for Burnley Football Club as Brian Reid has been and as Gordon Armstrong has been," said the manager.

"And I'm not critical of Matty Heywood because he has done very well. He's got a bright future but young lads do make mistakes from time to time."

The fans, understandably, reacted by jeering what they had witnessed as Burnley slid to yet another defeat. But Ternent was defiant.

"No-one likes to hear that sort of thing. It does upset me but it upsets me in the respect that it affects the players more than it affects me because I know that I will turn the place around," said Ternent. "To be fair to the fans we are not giving them what they are hoping for. But we will do in time.

"They pay their money and I've no complaints about it but what I would say is that encouragement is far better than what we heard out there.

"But I can understand their reasons why."

The Burnley boss is hoping to give Neil Moore and Peter Swan another A team game tomorrow at Oldham.

Both turned out on Saturday, Moore for 90 minutes, Swan for half a match. If they can get through tomorrow and then enjoy a few full days training, they could yet figure in Burnley's plans for the games against York and Lincoln.

"They are going to be very important games for us," said Ternent.

"But they are all important at the moment.

"We have to keep faith and start winning again."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.