SOME may say Scunthorpe United's fate remains in their hands.

Midfielder Sam Togwell, with a neat turn of phrase, believes it rests in the players' boots.

The 26-year-old insists the Iron would currently prefer to have games in hand over their relegation rivals, rather than points on the board.

But they have a chance to bag some more of the latter at Middlesbrough this evening.

"We don't look at the table now because we've got three games in hand (on Crystal Palace), so it's not a true reflection of where we are," he said.

"If it was all level on games, and we were still in the same position, then we would start to worry.

"Some teams prefer the points on the board rather than the games in hand.

"We've got the games in hand, so it's in our favour at the moment.

"It's in our shoes. It's up to us to get the points in those games to propel us out of the relegation zone.

"We believe we're good enough to get out of it.

"February will be a crucial month, that's for sure, because the games come thick and fast.

"Hopefully we can get a few wins and good results under our belt and the month won't seem as long."

Togwell admits he is surprised to see tonight's opponents currently scrapping at the wrong end of the table.

But he has warned his Iron team-mates, they are likely to be in for a tough night.

"Boro are a good team," said the former Barnsley man.

"They are a team that I feel shouldn't be at the bottom.

"I'm sure they will be strong going forward, but obviously they are down the bottom for a reason.

"But the emphasis is on us. We've got a good away record, so we're full of confidence away and we feel we can get a good result."