WHILE he may have delivered a cutting, hard-hitting appraisal of this awful defeat, Billy Davies stoically refused to accept that this performance was an indication of the fate that awaits Nottingham Forest at the end of a season of perpetual struggle in the Championship.

But, if his side are to avoid the indignity of an immediate return to League One, it may well depend on the ability of his players to muster the same level of self-belief and confidence as their manager.

Because this was an afternoon when Nottingham Forest managed to produce a display that not only lacked a single shred of self-assurance or drive, but more critically, also lacked the battling spirit and fight that will certainly be required to keep them clear of the bottom three.

During the course of 90 dismal minutes, not once did the team that had raised optimism levels by claiming deserved victories over the likes of Reading and Preston, offer a single scrap of evidence to suggest that they are capable of winning one of their remaining seven games, never mind the four victories Davies believes are required to avoid relegation.

Even Burnley manager Owen Coyle admitted that his side had not been at their best as they claimed an emphatic, one-sided victory.

They didn't have to be.

Burnley won at a canter, without breaking sweat – and they did so because they found themselves pitched against a side that not only offered minimal resistance, but in fact repeatedly shot themselves in the foot with some calamitous, suicidal defending.

As clinical and impressive as their finishing was, this was not so much three points earned by Burnley, as three points handed to them on a plate via a series of agonising, inexplicable mistakes.

Afterwards, skipper James Perch showed commendable character to stand up and face some difficult questions on the touchline.

And, as a handful of remaining Burnley fans gleefully gestured their delight by pointing at their five outstretched fingers from behind the glass of the executive boxes, the defender offered some brutally honest answers.

This, he said, was a performance that could not be repeated, nor condoned. It was unacceptable. Rubbish.

He admitted that they had let themselves and the fans down; that they had not shown enough fight.

All of which was painfully true.

But what matters more is that, after hinting that they were capable of escaping relegation with ease, following some encouraging performances, in the space of two defeats, at Watford and Turf Moor, Forest now look doomed.

Crystal Palace, who were hammered 4-2 at Burnley in midweek, responded by claiming an unlikely 3-1 win at Swansea on Saturday, against the Welsh side who had previously lost only once on home soil all season.

This weekend, when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit the City Ground, Forest will have a similar chance at redemption.

But, if they are to stage a renaissance of their own, it is going to require a dramatic improvement; a compete transformation, in fact, against the club with the best away record in the division.

Because, from the moment Robbie Blake's swirling free-kick from a tight angle wide on the left side was allowed to loop over the head of keeper Paul Smith and inside the far post on Saturday, Forest were beaten.

A second goal, orchestrated by a weaving, dancing run by the former Forest player that culminated in a low ball across the face of goal that was bundled home by Wade Elliott, earned the home side a two-goal advantage and left the visitors to be jeered off the pitch by the travelling fans at the interval. But, rather than respond with a grittier display after the break, Forest merely got worse.

Clarke Carlisle ghosted in unmarked at the far post to make it 3-0 with a simple header and, after side-stepping Luke Chambers, Jay Rodriguez sent an unstoppable shot into the top corner of the net to make it four only ten minutes into the second half.

Joey Gudjonsson arrived off the bench to lash a spectacular volley high into the top corner of the net to rub salt in the wounds, after Forest had failed to properly clear the ball from their penalty area.

Their response was half-hearted at best as Chris Cohen skimmed a low effort well wide of the post and Lewis McGugan forced a stretching, acrobatic save from Brian Jenson with a dipping effort.

But even the young substitute did not escape Davies' wrath, as the manager revealed he had been disciplined and dropped over issues relating to his 'lifestyle' off the pitch, presumably related to the recent accusations levelled at him that he was overweight.

There is no mistaking that Forest need a greater appetite, but it is a hunger for victory that they require; a greater mental strength to claim the results that they now so desperately need, after finding themselves sucked down to fourth bottom in the table, with both Southampton and Barnsley, crucially, boasting games in hand.

Davies, a man more used to promotion pushes with Preston and Derby, remains convinced his players have what it takes to avoid relegation.

But, with seven games left, time is running out for Forest to prove his faith is justified.

And the starting point will be for them to start believing in themselves.