Barrett confident the goals will come

Brighton's on-loan Arsenal striker Graham Barrett hopes to put the club's league woes to one side and re-discover his goalscoring…

Brighton's on-loan Arsenal striker Graham Barrett hopes to put the club's league woes to one side and re-discover his goalscoring touch in their rearranged FA Cup third-round tie against Norwich.

Albion are bottom of Division One - which contrasts starkly with the high-flying Canaries who are fourth - but tomorrow's cup mission offers a welcome distraction.

Boss Steve Coppell has asked for more from Republic of Ireland youngster Barrett - who has scored just once in 14 matches - and the player is looking to respond immediately.

"I feel Graham has got to contribute more in the box. He does an awful lot of work outside the box," said Coppell.

"His season will be judged on his goals and games ratio, which isn't too good at the moment."

But despite increased scrutiny from his manager, Barrett remains supremely confident the goals are just around the corner.

"I am sure I'm going to bag a hat-trick soon," he told the club's website, www.seagulls.co.uk. "I feel sharp. That's the way it goes with strikers; you go through a patch without scoring and then get loads."

  • Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date

  • Sign up for push alerts to get the best breaking news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone

  • Listen to In The News podcast daily for a deep dive on the stories that matter