One or two players have got back on the training ground

Ellis worked with Blackwell at Leeds for two years before leaving at the end of his contract at the end of last season. He's since been with Stoke but their boss Tony Pulis has today given him permission to go and speak with Luton.

Blackwell is preparing his squad for this first game in charge, and is expected to make changes. He has said that they have been working on having the squad able to play in either a 4-4-2 or a 4-5-1 system, something he believes is vital if they are to survive.

At Turf Moor we've had a boost with players returning from injury and there was also a change this morning when Dave Kevan spoke to the press ahead of the game rather than manager Steve Cotterill. It was done for a reason, the last time Kevan faced the media ahead of the game we beat Leeds, our last win.

Dave believes the situation is better for this game than it was for our last outing against Preston when we had just sixteen players available to us. "We've got one or two players who have managed to get back on the training ground, and that is encouraging," the assistant boss said.

"Andy Gray is looking more like his old self after being laid low with an illness that took a lot out of him. The break has helped and he's now looking fresher, fitter and stronger and hopefully he will be raring to go. He's trained the last three days without any problems and it is nice to see him looking that way."

The Clarets have been boosted by the signings of Graham Coughlan and Paul McVeigh, and Kevan believed they are already making an impact. "They will increase competition and that will be important. We've had one or two missing through injury and international football and having them available has been a big help in our preparation for Saturday.

"We are well aware that Saturday is a massive game and we will be looking to make sure the three points are ours. The run we've been on has been well documented and there's no getting away from it. Now we are looking forward, both to Luton as the priority and then beyond that."