Soccer-Shawcross confident Stoke can end poor run at Watford

Oct 25 (Reuters) - Stoke City are confident they can turn their season around after a poor start and a much-needed win at Watford in the Premier League on Saturday will be the best way to return to form, defender Ryan Shawcross has said.

Stoke's 2-1 league loss to Bournemouth last weekend was their fifth defeat in six games across all competitions. Mark Hughes' side have crashed out of the League Cup and are hovering one spot above the relegation zone in the league.

Shawcross said it's only a matter of time before Stoke start climbing up the standings.

"There is no hiding from the fact that the past few weeks have been disappointing," Shawcross told the club's website(www.stokecityfc.com).

"It's not been a nice period for us, but if we can get a win at Watford then everything will look a lot brighter.

"Of course, the lads are a little bit down at the moment because we want to be winning matches, but we have to remember this is a marathon not a sprint... I am sure we will turn things around soon."

Watford, who are sixth in the table, beat top four contenders Arsenal in their last home game and will be looking to overcome Saturday's 4-2 loss to champions Chelsea. Stoke won both their league meetings against Watford last season. (Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)