Clark believes Pompey win can give Luton a huge boost as they head to title-challenging Burnley

Luton match-winner Jordan Clark believes his side can head to Burnley with renewed hope on Saturday after finally ending their 12-game winless run when beating Portsmouth on Saturday.

It was Clark himself who scored the only goal of the contest on 25 minutes at the weekend, finishing off a move that he started from inside his own D, as Town finally picked up a first three points since December 20. The result was enough to move the Hatters to within two points of fourth bottom Hull City, although that swiftly became five once more after the Tigers picked up a 2-0 success over fellow relegation rivals Plymouth Argyle on Tuesday evening.

Luton now head to Turf Moor to take on a Clarets side who moved to within two points of second-placed Sheffield United after beating Cardiff City 2-1 in midweek, conceding just a 10th goal in 35 second tier matches this term. Despite the odds being stacked against his team, Clark said: “It’s massive, it’s been a tough season, everyone’s felt it, so it was nice to walk round the pitch and see everyone smiling.

"It will be nice to go in with the boys and have that bit of confidence to kick us on from now until the end of the season as after you come in off a loss on the weekend it’s always a tough week because everyone’s a little bit down. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve got a lot of experienced heads, the manager and staff will always try and bring players’ confidence back up and try and create the environment to forget the result as we’ll learn from the result but we’ll forget it and move on a little bit.

"We always watch the videos, what we can do better, what we need to work on and work on it throughout the week, but it will bring everyone’s moods up. They’ll be more bubbly, training will be more lively and it just gives the place a nice feel to it. Going into the game next week which will be a real tough game, it will be nice going up there with this win and we can give Burnley a real game. We knew we’ve got so much quality in there and we’re not daft, we’ve not been good enough this year, we know that.

"We were in the worst position we could have possibly been, but we just knew we needed that one win as you get one win in this league and it just gives everyone so much of a boost. When you’re on a losing run, it’s so hard to get out of it, hard to get out of the rut, it just sort of snowballs. You saw it the year we got promoted, some games we probably played rubbish and we just nicked a 1-0 win and when you’re on the winning run it snowballs.

"You turn up next week and just think, we’re going to win here, we’re going to win. This year has been tough as it’s been the opposite. It’s tough when you go 1-0 down as you think ‘oh no, here we go again.' It’s not that we’ve not had some good games, the Sheff United game we played really well, especially the first half and come away on the wrong side of it, but I’m just pleased for everyone. I think at any level you play at, we know what’s happened with this club, where we were last year, there’s no hiding place now.

"We’re in a bad position, but we just had to get that win. Everyone will have a big boost and I’m just buzzing for all the staff, the new gaffer because we’re probably the only team that’s not had that new manager bounce that everyone gets, but they’ve been working tirelessly and I’m just really pleased for all of them. Hopefully this now can give us that boost and that confidence to go to Burnley next week and try and get something from there, get a few more wins before the international break comes.”

With Luton having the better of things in the first period, the Hatters had to fight for their lives after the break to secure all three points, Pompey piling the pressure on, with Conor Ogilvie missing a glorious chance in the final moments to secure a share of the spoils, heading over the top from just six yards out. Breathing a sigh of relief, Clark continued: “We defended really well, especially the boys at the back, they were really really, really good.

"I think the header which the lad missed was probably in their eyes a bit of a sitter, as I thought I won the ball in the middle of the pitch and then my man’s crossed it and they probably should score. We got away with that one, but apart from that I can’t really remember them having too many chances. I’m just pleased for everyone, pleased for the lads at the back, just everyone who took part because it took a real, real effort and we knew we had to win.”

Even if Saturday’s outcome goes the way of the formbook, with 10 matches remaining afterwards, five at home and five away, Clark is still confident Town can still be playing in the second tier next term, said: “We’re hearing everyone saying it’s must win, must win, but there’s still loads of points to play for. One game won’t define the season, it’s just getting that one win and I know next week will be tough, but the next few games before the international break are massive.

"We’ve got to pick up as many points as we can, going into the little break and then the final stretch before the end of the season will be so important, but we just need to pick up points now and make sure we’re in this league for the next year.”

Just how the Hatters find themselves in this position they are in this term has continually left Clark, who was part of Town’s Premier League squad last term, stumped too, as he added: “I’ve got no idea. We lost a lot of quality come the end of last season, but I’ve been thinking about it a lot throughout the year and I can’t believe how we’ve been in this position. Obviously we are, we’ve got to accept it now and for the quality we’ve got in the squad and the dressing room, we know we shouldn't be where we are, but at the end of the day it’s only us now who can get ourselves out of it.

“Injuries have always been tough, we always seem to be getting in a good place and then we get injuries. It’s no excuse but we’ve got to try and get as many players fit and available as we can. Having that competition for places is always vital as it brings training quality up and the more we can get available for games is going to benefit us more. Now it’s nearing the end of the season hopefully we can get a couple of players back which I’m sure will give us a big boost.”