WHEN push comes to shove, there is one thing guaranteed to get you out of a hole in football - goalscorers.

That's why they cost so much more than any other position, both in terms of transfer fees and wages.

Goals are the elusive key to football. Without them, you won't win games; with them, they can hand you a get out of jail free card.

That's exactly what Saints played at Burnley.

They did not play well for the majority of the match. It was certainly one of their poorer performances this season, albeit compared to the high standards we have become used to.

But they had the quality and class in front of goal and it made all the difference in the end.

It was the difference between no points and another three.

Grzegorz Rasiak really is the man of the moment and is on fire in footballing terms.

Eight goals in nine games this season sees him at the top of the Championship's top scorers list.

It also makes him one of the most prolific Saints strikers ever at an early stage of his St Mary's career under George Burley.

The two finishes he pulled out against Burnley were right out of the top drawer and exactly what you want your strikers to do.

He will need a few more goals to come from Bradley Wright-Phillips and Kenwyne Jones to support him and they must deliver those.

But with the midfield able to chip in with goals as well, that side of things should not be a problem this season, injury permitting anyway.

Defensively, Saints were unusually vulnerable at Turf Moor.

Burnley came at them from the start and Saints looked very shaky - the lack of height at the back finally catching up with them.

The home side took the lead after just four minutes when a long throw was flicked on, Saints failed to clear and a grateful Steve Jones swivelled at the far post and slammed the ball across Kelvin Davis into his bottom left-hand corner.

Gifton Noel-Williams then headed wide when he should have scored.

Burnley were totally on top and it seemed they would extend their lead further until the moment that changed the match.

With 16 minutes gone Burnley were preparing to take a left-wing free kick.

There was the usual jostling in the area but suddenly Jhon Viafara collapsed to the ground with his face in his hands.

Most of the ground, including the TV cameras, didn't see what had happened.

But referee Darren Drysdale had spotted an elbow from Wayne Thomas and had no hesitation in showing him a red card.

Just two minutes after that, Saints equalised.

Rudi Skacel collected the ball on the left, looked up and picked out the head of Rasiak in the centre of the six-yard box. He made the powerful run past his man and duly headed home.

Anybody expecting Saints to cruise to victory from there, however, was wrong.

Burnley were dogged and determined and regained the lead when a harmless-looking deep free-kick was lobbed into the Saints area.

It should be dealt with 100 times out of 100 but Andy Gray was allowed to get to the ball and steer it into the bottom corner.

Saints knew they had to step up their game in the second half.

Burnley strung nine men across the edge of their area, allowing Saints possession until the final third but packing that area to make themselves difficult to break down.

Saints' problem was that they didn't stretch the play, something you must do against ten men.

Too often they were playing far too narrow, down the centre rather out to the wings.

But when push came to shove, they had the quality to deliver a win.

The first blow was struck by Skacel, who jinked past one man and drilled a low effort from 20 yards that flew into the bottom corner.

Just like the first goal, the second came when Saints did get the ball out wide.

Again it was to Skacel on the left and again he picked out Rasiak - but this time the header, far post from 12 yards back-peddling, back across goal into the top corner, was brilliant.

Davis had to make a fantastic late save from Gray to ensure Saints won, but win it they did.

They say it's the mark of a good team who wins when they don't play that well.

That's twice in a row now for Saints in the league.

It goes to show that quality always counts in the end.