GRAEME Souness is banking on away wins in Blackburn Rovers' race to beat relegation, starting at Fulham tonight.

His side's miserable home form continued on Saturday as Leeds United came away from Ewood Park with a 2-1 victory, Rovers' 10th Premiership home defeat.

It left Blackburn level on points with both Leeds and Portsmouth, who could overtake Rovers with a point at home to Birmingham this afternoon.

Souness said: "We're only outside the bottom three on goal difference and our away form has been much better than at Ewood. We're going to have to win a couple of games away from home now."

But Souness believes his players will show the survival instincts they need to ensure top-flight football for next season.

He said: "If there was any magic words I would have been saying them four or five moths ago. There's nothing I can say, nothing I can change in training, I can't suddenly start giving them different food or a pill that will make them different. That has to come from within.

"You are either a proper player or someone who throws the towel in and I believe I've got a lot of people in my dressing room who will roll their sleeves up. We've done it before, why can't we do it again?"

Michael Gray is facing a race to be fit for Fulham after pulling an abductor muscle and limping off the pitch at the end of Saturday's defeat.

But although Gray is doubtful, Souness has revealed his delight that Craig Short and Lorenzo Amoroso are back in the centre of his defence.

Short recovered from a calf strain to take on Leeds and scored his first goal of the season, while Amoruso made an encouraging comeback after six months out with a knee injury.

"If we'd had them all season we wouldn't be in the situation we are in," said Souness.

"They handled Alan Smith and Mark Viduka as well as anyone has handled them."