IPSWICH striker Marcus Stewart is convinced he can fire the goals to guarantee Town's Premiership survival as he trains his sights on Blackburn Rovers ahead of tonight's vital six-pointer at Ewood.

Stewart is still the Blues' top scorer with nine goals this term, despite finding the net just once since breaking his jaw last October.

Crucially, however, he has not scored a Premiership goal in eight games, which has co-incided with Town's recent slump in fortunes.

And manager George Burley is desperate for the former Huddersfield man to start hitting the back of the net again quickly as they gear up for back-to-back away games against Rovers and Newcastle.

"I'm now feeling much fitter after my injury problems and all I need is a run in the side to get sharp and start scoring goals again," vowed Stewart, Ipswich's top-scorer last season with 19 goals.

"It's been disappointing not to play the full 90 minutes of late but the manager has put me in for the last two matches, so hopefully that will continue."

Ipswich looked to have pulled clear of the relegation scrap after a run of seven wins in nine games at the turn of the year.

But three successive defeats at the hands of Liverpool, Leeds and Southampton have plunged them firmly back into the mire -- placing even greater emphasis on the outcome of tonight's game.

"The game at Ewood Park is a crunch match and a win there could provide us with the springboard we need for the final few games of the season," said Stewart.

"Rovers seem to be flying following their Worthington Cup win, and we need to match the passion and fire in the belly they've obviously got at the moment.

"If we do that, we know we've got the ability in the side to go on and win the game.

"Our 2-0 defeat against Leeds last Wednesday confirmed that we are now in a fight for our Premiership life.

"To be honest, I thought we played really well at Elland Road and the scoreline certainly flattered our hosts.

"But it's goals that win matches and of late, we haven't been scoring enough of them.

"Andy Marshall's slip also contributed to the defeat but bad luck seems to follow you around like a bad smell when you're down at the bottom."

Earlier in the season before his freak accident, Stewart was in a rich vein of form having scored eight goals in the opening couple of months, including five in four games.

Now he needs to recapture that predatory touch if the Tractor Boys are to survive -- particularly considering some of the tough games they still have to come.

"When you look at our run-in, our final three games are against Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool, so it's imperative that we have guaranteed our safety before playing those teams," added Stewart.

"It has been touted that the 40-point mark should ensure safety and, having looked at the table in some depth, I would agree with that assumption.

"Such a target is certainly within our reach, but we need to be looking for four points from our next two games, otherwise we really will be looking over our shoulders."