GRANT Holt has hailed the Bluebirds supporters for his warm welcome on his Barrow AFC return – but says he is not back at Holker Street just for the acclaim.

Holt pulled on an AFC shirt for the first time in 14 years on Saturday, when he came off the bench in the 2-0 defeat to Macclesfield Town.

His introduction midway through the second half provoked the biggest cheers of the afternoon, and no doubt helped bring in a gate of 1,644 – more than 500 more than for the previous home game with Aldershot.

But, while Holt has been delighted at the reception he has received from AFC fans and the reaction to his return to the club where he started to climb the footballing ladder, he is determined to show he is not back in Barrow just for the adoration.

Instead, the 36-year-old, who has been to Norwich City, Aston Villa, Wigan Athletic and Nottingham Forrest – among others – in a fine career since he departed the Bluebirds in 2003, is out to make an impact in the National League, on and off the pitch.

“It’s nice to be back, but I’m not here for a clap and a ‘great, he’s back’,” said Holt, who has taken on the role of player/coach under new manager Ady Pennock. “I’m coming here to show the Grant Holt who left 14 years ago can come back and still do it, still offer a lot to this football club. That will come.

“We’ve got some good weeks of training coming up, and you will start seeing the best of me in those few weeks.”

He added: “I’ve spoken to the manager and he has told me what he wants, what he thinks he can achieve with the club and the players, and what he wants to do. I had a good chat with him and I had a good chat with the owner, who told me what he wanted to do.

“Personally, it’s an opportunity for me to play at a higher level (than Evo-Stik Southern Premier League side Kings Lynn Town, whom he departed to join Barrow) and coach. It ticked all the boxes when it all came together.

“It’s an opportunity for me to do a lot of coaching while still playing at a very, very good level, and that was it.”

Holt admitted there has been previous occasions when he had looked at coming back to Barrow.

The most recent was when Paul Cox resigned in August, and he was linked with being part of the management set-up then, before Micky Moore was appointed for his brief and ill-fated reign.

But now is the perfect time for the Carlisle-born man to return, and he said: “I think everyone knows I’ve got an affinity to Barrow and how much I want the club to succeed with how much I text, Tweet and how much I look at the results since I left.

“It’s been thought about before and, at times, it probably wasn’t right, but I think this time was right.”

Holt's return on Saturday saw him meet up with former chairman Brian Keen, who was in charge at Holker Street during his previous spell as a player.

And the striker was happy to see many other familiar faces as well, whether they be in the background or on the terraces.

For Holt, that is one of the things which makes Barrow such a good club, and he hopes the team will be able to brings smiles to the faces of such long-term figures.

“There are lots of people still here,” he said. “You walk around and there are lads in the tunnel, there are people upstairs, there are people everywhere who are still here from last time. That’s the kind of club it is; it’s the kind of club where people stay, where they are looked after.

“Among the fans, there are some familiar faces, some fans who have been here for a long time, and that’s what it’s about.

“We’ve just got to keep doing what we are doing, keep believing in what we are doing, and they will stay with us. If we keep putting in performances, keep working hard and have that never-say-die attitude, then the fans will be with you.”