Joey Barton praised the resilience of Bristol Rovers striker Aaron Collins after his two goals helped sink battling Rochdale in a 4-2 win.

Rovers went ahead in the 10th minute when Antony Evans curled a free-kick beyond the reach of Jay Lynch and were two up in the 51st minute through Collins’ 25-yard rocket.

But Rochdale replied nine minutes later when Jake Beesley flicked home a Corey O’Keeffe cross and Beesley made it 2-2 from the penalty spot in the 66th minute after being brought down.

Harry Anderson restored the home side’s lead with an 84th-minute shot before Collins netted his second five minutes later to settle the outcome.

Barton said: “I’m delighted for Aaron because it hasn’t been plain sailing for him since he joined us in the summer.

“He has shown great character and resilience to come through a dry spell and today he showed just why we brought him in.

“Suddenly his confidence is high and we are seeing what a big player he can be for us. He can score all types of goal and his first today was worth the admission price alone.

“So was Antony Evans’ free-kick and overall it was a phenomenal game of League Two football. At 2-2, we were under the pump, but the lads’ desire to win shone through.”

Barton was also full of praise for referee James Linington, saying: “His performance helped make it the game it was.

“He kept his cards in his pockets and you could see why he officiates at a higher level.”

Rochdale boss Robbie Stockdale said: “You can’t expect to win a game if you only play for 25 minutes and that was my message to the lads in the dressing room after the game.

“I was unhappy with our first-half display, which wasn’t good enough and might have seen us more than one down at the break.

“At 2-0, Rovers looked in control, but we kept at it and managed to get ourselves back on level terms.

“At that point, there only looked like being one winner. We passed the ball well and it seemed only a matter of time before we scored again.

“But their third goal has killed us and then we get caught pushing forward for another equaliser to concede a fourth.

“Overall, I am disappointed. You could say there were positives from some of our second-half football, but it wasn’t enough to deserve anything from the game.”

Rovers lost centre-back Connor Taylor to injury at half-time and never looked secure from then on.

Barton added: “Connor took a kick on a calf against Port Vale in midweek and it stiffened up. He has a week to recover and hopefully will be OK for our next game.”