Luton chief urges players and fans to stick together during Latics clash

The Hatters approach the contest after being handed a thoroughly humiliating 7-0 defeat at the hands of Brentford last weekend, in which Jones himself came in for criticism from the terraces.

However, with Luton back at home this afternoon, and knowing a win would move them four points clear of fellow strugglers Wigan, the Hatters boss is hoping for a positive atmosphere to be created at Kenilworth Road.

He said: “These moments were always going to come, maybe not 7-0, but we were going to have difficult moments.

“We’re probably measured on (this) Saturday. If we can be together after everybody’s trying to fraction the groups and put in a big Luton Town performance, those are the days that keep you in the Championship.

“So there’s no point in fighting, there’s no point in not being together, we need everybody pulling in the same direction at three o’clock on Saturday, so I’ve got no doubt they will.

“We got whacked on the chin at the weekend in every aspect and the one thing it’s shown me, is nobody’s going to help us.

"We’ve got each other, we’ve got to help ourselves, and that’s the big lesson I’ve taken from it.”

On just how the week has been, Jones admitted that although he has done plenty of work on trying to keep only a second league clean sheet of the season, there was no extra training for the squad on the back of their Griffin Park hammering.

He added: “It’s not just the back four, it’s the whole team, we’ve done work on the whole team defensively, absolutely.

“From a sports science point of view, you measure a three game week, which is difficult enough in terms of recovery.

"Then you measure the mental aspect which none of us can measure.

"I’ve kept the week very, very similar to what a normal working week would be here as we need to be fresh at the weekend, ready to lay a glove on Wigan.”