THE Clarets defence may have shipped goals at an alarming rate this season but the one thing they have always managed to do is score goals.

That is why manager Stan Ternent was so surprised that for the second successive game his team fired blanks at Portsmouth on Tuesday night.

But against Gillingham on Saturday, the Clarets need to start scoring again to avoid recording a third straight blank for the first time since the opening weeks of the season.

Burnley may be in a private battle with Grimsby Town to see who will concede the most first division goals this season but only seven sides have scored more than the Clarets, a remarkable achievement considering they had only scored once in five games in August.

The Clarets have actually scored against every team in the division except for Harry Redknapp's league leaders although the last two scoreless games make it three out of five when they have been kept out by the opposition.

"When everyone is fit, then up front is the strongest part of my squad," admitted Ternent who has even been forced to play four of his strikers in the past three games because of the injuries he has in his squad, albeit with three of them in more withdrawn roles.

But with three of his forwards in double figures for the campaign, Gareth Taylor with 16, Robbie Blake 14 and Ian Moore on 11, it is clear he has a decent array of firepower at his disposal.

Ternent can also add to that trio Dimitri Papadopoulos, who has netted six times despite a limited number of starting opportunities.

The one striker who has yet to seriously feature this campaign is fans' favourite Andy Payton. He has twice come on as a substitute but it remains to be seen whether he will have another start for the club before his contract ends in the summer.

He has been struggling for fitness in recent weeks and Ternent must wait and see if he is available for a place in the squad to face Gillingham on Saturday.

Other concerns surround Lee Briscoe, who was ruled out of the Pompey game having been stretchered off against Norwich, and Papadopoulos who only lasted nine minutes at Fratton Park before he hobbled off with a hip injury.

He is also waiting to find out if Drissa Diallo and Ian Cox may be fit for consideration having missed a number of matches.

Ternent may have a couple of selection posers ahead of Saturday's game but he will be facing a different set of questions tonight when he is the star of "An Audience with Stan Ternent" at Clitheroe Football Club.

Fans will have the chance to put the Burnley boss on the spot and find out what he thinks about the events of this season and his plans for next. The event is a sell-out.