NIGEL Pearson has urged his Saints side to prove that the 5-0 hammering at Hull was a one-off.

Saints face a crucial relegation six-pointer against Coventry at St Mary's tomorrow, their first opportunity to bounce back following last week's dreadful display.

Pearson is keen to ensure Saints stay positive and don't dwell on the defeat after good work in the previous five games.

He said: "I'm prepared to deal with it as a one off, if that's what it is.

"I don't enjoy losing at any time but to lose in the fashion that we did was particularly disappointing.

"I can't afford to dwell on that for too long because the five games prior to that there were a lot of positives.

"I look forward to this game knowing that if we perform like we can then we can look forward to a very good result.

"There can be no complacency and if there was any complacency it can't happen again."

Pearson believes getting some consistency is the key for Saints in the remainder of the season.

He has urged his team to seize the opportunity to pick up points in every game.

"What you have to do is look at one of the main reasons we are in the situation we are in, which is that we've not been consistent enough all season," said the Saints boss.

"I suppose in that sense it would be fairly easy to try and identify why we're in the position we're in.

"It really is about what we do between now and the end of the season.

"Every game is of huge importance to us.

"It was an opportunity that was wasted last week and we can't afford to waste any more opportunities to pick points up."

He added: "They're all going to be of a similar vein because I've been saying for several weeks it's going to be tight until the end of the season and there's going to be twists and turns.

"This is a huge game for us because it's the next one we've got to play.

"We're playing against a side in a very similar position.

"There are a lot of similarities between themselves and ourselves in terms of where they are, stature, new manager etc - but my concern is us.

"My interest at this moment in time is to make sure my team is prepared for this game.

"We do have quite a large number of players unavailable which is disappointing.

"It would be nice to have everybody available for selection, but it's not the case."