Chris Martin: Let's start a new run

Chris Martin believes his strike partner Grant Holt will return to the Canaries line-up with a vengeance this weekend after sitting out the last three games through suspension.

And Martin feels Holt will return to a side desperate to set off on another unbeaten streak as they look to secure one of the two automatic promotion spots.

The Martin-Holt contribution to the cause has been 30 league goals so far - 41 in total - but the absence of the senior man was more evident at Millwall on Saturday.

"Anyone is going to miss someone who has scored 23 goals and I think Grant will be looking to shake off the suspension and give it all he has to try - because obviously he's been missing for the last three games," said Martin, after taking his league tally for the season to 13 with his sixth goal in the last six games.

"He will be as frustrated as anyone that we have lost today, even though he wasn't playing, and hopefully if he does come back into the team he will be giving it his all."

Holt's absence left Martin with the responsibility up front, and his performance at The New Den showed how much he has matured, even since the start of the season.

"It's always nice to have a bit of extra responsibility because it shows that people think that you are good enough to handle it and hopefully I have shown that I can," said the 21-year-old. "I know we have lost, but hopefully I have showed I can take that burden and that will stand me in good stead for the rest of the season."

Martin's fourth-minute free-kick goal proved to be a false dawn, but the striker says there is enough character in the dressing room to shrug off the effects of the first league defeat since mid-October.

"Unfortunately we weren't able to hang on," he said. "That's the biggest thing and it was disappointing for everyone. We will have to wait and see how we react, but we all know that we have got good characters among the squad, we have shown that in the last few games, although we have won and that breeds confidence. But how we react to a defeat now is a totally different story - I suppose we haven't had to do that for a little while, but if you look back at Leeds and how we reacted to that, it's how it all started and if we can go on another run like that to the end of the season we will be delighted.

"It's a big game at Brighton next Saturday and we have to make sure we show character and go out there and give it everything we have got to make sure we can try and stay unbeaten to the end of the season.

"It's only three points at stake, nothing more, and we just need to concentrate and if we just show the character even that we did today at the end there fighting - we didn't give up at all, we kept going to the end - that should stand us in good stead for Saturday. There are enough quality players and enough fight and spirit and doggedness in there and enough quality out there to go and win on Saturday."