Barrow AFC boss Phil Brown has hailed the “Championship-standard” delivery of John Rooney amid the Bluebirds’ set-piece impact.

Rooney’s dead-ball deliveries proved crucial to Barrow’s Easter revival.

And manager Brown says the 31-year-old’s ability from such situations has been backed by commitment from his fellow players to boost AFC’s chances.

Four of Barrow’s six goals in their Easter games against Forest Green and Salford came via Rooney deliveries.

The AFC boss, whose side face Sutton United tomorrow, said: “I’m a big believer that set-pieces win games of football.

“I always have since I worked under Sam [Allardyce] at Bolton Wanderers.

“We had World Cup winners in Youri Djorkaeff, and the best thing about Jay Jay Okocha wasn’t his ability on the ball, it was that he had the best long throw in the Premier League.

“People don’t remember him for that but we do because we know that statistic alone can get you to places you’ve never been, ie Bolton Wanderers into Europe.

“John Rooney has a delivery that is nothing short of Championship if not Premier League standard.

“With set-pieces, if you’ve got the delivery you’re ticking a massive box, but then you have to have the movement and commitment.

“I looked around our changing room and every player I saw was 6ft 2in, 6ft 3in, 6ft 4in…

“I’m thinking, ‘I’ve got the size’ – but it’s then how you measure the character, the commitment.

“It’s by putting your head in. At the end of the season it’s measuring how many stitches you’ve got in your team.

“If you’re having to stitch players up at the end of every game it’s because they’ve put their bodies on the line and that’s what I’m asking for in the last four games.”

Barrow’s 4-0 win over Forest Green and 2-2 draw at Salford have raised hopes that the Bluebirds can seal survival.

They could even get the job done tomorrow with victory, should Oldham lose to Salford.

Brown, speaking about the crucial Easter games, added: “The turnaround in performance and scoreline, having lost three on the bounce, was quite remarkable.

“It’s down to the dedication and more importantly application of the players.

“They’ve heard a voice all season, that has changed, a new manager comes in and they’re hearing a difference voice.

“You can’t reinvent the wheel – it’s just a different voice with a different way of playing, to cut our cloth accordingly.

“With the three defeats, they must have been thinking, ‘Is this right, is this the way forward?’

“I pointed out to them that there were tell-tale signs – numbers were up both in the games and training – and things were moving in the right direction.

“And every manager has to hold his nerve. You’ve got to convince a group of players.

“The most important part for me was 24 outfield players turned up for training on Thursday before the Friday game, so everybody was contributing, coming to the party.

“I needed that to be carried into the games and that’s what they did.”