Scunthorpe manager Nigel Adkins is adamant his side will avoid relegation as they prepare for Friday's clash with Stoke.The Iron slipped to the foot of the table after they suffered their seventh home defeat of the season against Ipswich in midweek.

But Adkins is positive and insisted his side can avoid the drop into League One despite their perilous position.

"We will stay up - the luck will come for us and the only way it will is through working hard," Adkins told the club's official website: "We need to keep belief. Words are cheap but we need to work as hard as we can.

"The result against Ipswich was disappointing, as is the manner of it. If we'd had a little bit more quality and a little bit more composure then we might have had a little bit more.

"The effort and commitment was excellent. Jim Goodwin and Jack Cork were immense in the centre of midfield.

"But with the anxiety that will come from our league position, people are going to rush things and not show composure. But that will come.

"We're bottom now, but what a fantastic achievement it will be when we stay up."

More Football News from TEAMtalk