Caretaker Barrow boss Rob Kelly was delighted to spread some early Christmas cheer to the club’s supporters.

Goals from Scott Quigley from the spot, Luke James and Harrison Biggins secured the club’s first Football League win with fans in attendance since 1972 against Cheltenham Town on Saturday.

Victory was the Bluebirds’ first in nine league outings and ended a dismal run of five straight defeats.

“It was great having the crowd in,” admitted Kelly, after his second game in charge.

“I thought they made a huge difference.

“They got right behind us, it was a bit how football should be really.

“It was a good pitch, but a challenging pitch.

"The crowd were roaring us on against a good, proper team.”

Barrow have picked up successive league wins just once so far this season.

But Kelly is hopeful this performance can be a springboard to build on to get their stuttering season back on track.

Kelly, who was David Dunn’s number two before his departure, added: “It’s three points but it’s only one performance and it’s something to build on.

“You can see the work that’s been done and David takes great credit for that.

“There are a lot of things going on behind the scenes with the club coming up.

"It’s an exciting time but a challenging time.

“Obviously the club hasn’t been at this level for almost 50 years. There are things going on in the background to move the club forward.

“Those are things that people don’t see and David was a huge part of that.

“On the pitch today obviously you can see what’s been done on the training pitch over three or four months.

“Some make the jump quicker than others, some can handle it quicker and other it takes longer."