Phil Brown says he wants to help restore Barrow AFC’s “identity” by training more often in the town.

The Bluebirds boss will today oversee an open training session at Holker Street at 3pm.

It will allow fans to watch the session and meet Brown and some of the squad afterwards.

And the new manager, whose side take on Port Vale at the Dunes Hotel Stadium tomorrow, says the importance of being based in the town more often should be underlined.

“The training facility we have is very good – the only downside is it’s in Bury,” he said.

“I think to get any kind of identity as a club, where you train should be where you play.

“I’m bringing the boys up to train on the pitch [today] in preparation for the Port Vale game. It gives us a bit of identity and feel for the place.

“That’s what I’m all about – the badge, people wearing the shirt with pride, that’s what we’re driving towards.”

The open session is free for fans to attend, with Brown, No2 Neil McDonald and some members of the squad then to appear in the fan zone to meet supporters.

Brown said the training issue is one of various longer-term things he would like to address at the club.

But he admitted that certain wishes would require patience at a time the top priority remains the eight games from which Barrow need points to stay in the EFL.

“It’s never been my biggest strength, patience, I’m afraid,” Brown said.

“But Barrow’s been around for a lot longer than I have, that’s for sure, and you’ve got to be patient, where building blocks are concerned.

“When your training ground has ‘Bury FC’ above the gates, that’s not right for me; you haven’t got any identity.

“If you’re driving in as a Barrow AFC you want to see that name above the gates.

“That’s a long-term plan. The short-term plan is to win games of football. If we don’t win games of football I’ll not be here, it’s as simple as that.

“We want Barrow to be in EFL League Two next season. We know we’ve got eight cup finals, eight tough games, and the majority of the teams we’re playing are playing for something and are at the right end of the division because they’ve had a great season.

“We’ve got to be awkward to play against, and we’re looking at a little bit of consistency and more quality with and without the ball.

“We’ve got a game plan for both and it’s about putting them in place. We’ve been steadily trying to put the jigsaw together over the last week and a half.”