PAUL Sturrock did not miss a heartbeat when asked the question to which every Argyle fan wants the answer: did he think Argyle would avoid relegation from the Championship?

"Yep," he replied instantly, as the inquest to Saturday's 1-0 defeat at fellow strugglers Norwich was opened and adjourned.

The Pilgrims remain one of at least nine teams who are significantly short of the 52-point total which Luggy believes will be this season's safety mark.

They have seven matches left: four at home - Burnley next Saturday, Coventry, Doncaster and Barnsley; and three away, at Blackpool, Birmingham and Queens Park Rangers.

"Burnley becomes a huge, huge game for us," said Luggy, "a very difficult game, but a winnable game, like the other three games at home.

"Now, we can talk about what we did do and what we didn't do [against Norwich] but if we go home and think it's all doom and gloom, and the whole world's against us, we need to remember that we have got another seven football games to keep our season alive - four of them at home against opposition I think we can win against."

Before Tuesday, when they lost at Swansea, Argyle had gone on an unbeaten four-game run, taking points off leaders Wolves, Reading, Sheffield United and Watford.

It is that sort of form from his players - also seen in a 14-match streak earlier in the season that helped the Pilgrims climb 19 places - that makes Luggy believe his players will keep the Greens in the Championship.

"I think they have proved it with the wee runs they've had, and performances in wee spells," he said.

"In our last three home games, we have been very competitive with two teams in the top four, and we have got an in-form team to play next Saturday in Burnley.

"Had we been dead and buried from the start of the season until now, it would be different, but we went - I keep emphasising - bottom to fifth. Same boys.

"We have put ourselves in the rat-race with our last two results, but there are others down there. We have got to go back, lick our wounds, and get ourselves ready with a positive approach for next Saturday."

Luggy believes that the Green Army has a crucial role to play in the final four home games of the season, and called on them to match Norwich's fantastic support for their team.

He said: "The backing of the fans has been terrific at home in the last couple of games and was a real feature in why we got results against Reading, Sheffield United and Watford.

"We don't want to live in the past; we want to look to the future, get some of these boys a wee bit sharpened up, and make sure everybody is ready for the challenge of next Saturday.

"We have got to dig deep because we need a minimum three wins - I think 52 points would be enough to make sure we are in this league again [next season]."