Barrow caretaker boss Rob Kelly said the 1-0 win at Walsall showed his battling side know how much League Two survival means to the town.

Josh Kay curled home a classy 87th-minute winner at the Banks’s Stadium to move Barrow three points clear of the relegation zone, with two games in hand on 23rd-placed Southend.

The victory – a third in five games since Kelly took over – was deserved, with Tom Davies and Luke James both forcing fine saves from Saddlers goalkeeper Liam Roberts before substitute Kay’s strike.

“I know how hard people have worked to get in the league and we’ve got to do everything we can to maintain that. We know how important it is to the town,” said Kelly.

“It means a lot to people in Barrow and I’ve made the players aware of that – it took 48 years to get here so we’ve got to make sure we do everything we possibly can.

“This win gives us a chance and that’s what we want. We’ve played better than that at times and we’ve also played worse, but all I ask is that they give that commitment and show that resilience.

“I thought it was a tough, tight game, but I think overall, even though it was a game of not a lot of chances, if one of the teams deserved to win, it was us.

“The spirit and endeavour was really good. I felt that if we kept a clean sheet, we would have a really good chance of scoring.”

Defeat for Walsall means they are far from safe, just nine points above the bottom two, with interim boss Brian Dutton having collected just two points from seven games in charge.

Dutton said: “There’s a pattern – our good performances are against higher echelon sides and the poor performances are against the strugglers.

“We didn’t win enough duels right across the pitch. Up top we were dominated, the midfielders were second to the duels and defensively we were being dominated as well.

“There is a warm, fuzzy feeling when opposition coaches come across the M6 and see the stadium because we are a soft touch and that needs to change.

“That can only change if the players are prepared to step forward and be leaders. I’ve got to change things at the club but that takes time.”

Asked if he was worried about Walsall being dragged into a relegation scrap, Dutton added: “You’ve got to be concerned. The form is one win in 14 so you’ve got to be concerned.

“But we’ve got enough quality in these lads to move things forward. We just need to get that result on the board and start moving in the right direction.”