BURNLEY boss Sean Dyche believes his side is growing and maturing into the season, after grinding out a good win at Rotherham United.

The Clarets took an early lead in their Friday night game through the returning Andre Gray.

After missing the previous weekend’s defeat to Reading with a hamstring strain the striker returned with a bang with his ninth minute goal.

Grant Ward’s 25-yard equaliser with 15 minutes to go stunned the Clarets.

But Sam Vokes was alert to grab an 81st minute winner with his third goal of the season.

And Dyche, who gave a full debut to Joey Barton, was delighted with the way his players responded, and the way they are progressing back in the Championship.

“There’s got to be credit to them, sometimes the hardest fight is the one everyone expects you to win, and it played out a little bit like that,” he said.

“I think we deserved to win, but they kept fighting, and pressed harder than I’ve seen them this season, and they played well.

“They never stopped giving it everything to try and win, and got a worldly out of the blue, and all of a sudden it was a case of ‘what’s gone on there?’.

“They had some breakaways but Tom (Heaton) only made one save in the first half.

“But I’m delighted with the mentality of the players, it rubs off on each other.

“We have improvements to make, we can get fitter - Joey has come in and obviously needs more fitness, but he did very well.

“I think there’s more to come from the strike partnership, even though they both scored a goal.

“You’ve seen it the last couple of weeks, the madness of then Championship.

“I thought we we terrific last week and lost, and I thought we were okay and worked very hard (on Friday), and were solid, but not as good as last week, and we win.

“That’s the challenge of the Championship, finding different ways to win, and we’ve done it again.”

Match-winner Vokes admitted that the victory in South Yorkshire was a crucial one as the Clarets ended the weekend where they started it, in sixth, but just two points off the top two.

He said: “It was a huge three points. It was a tough place to go to, they’re obviously a strong side and picked up some good results recently, but it was a great way to pick up the three points for us.

“It was lovely to get the winning goal. It was good work from Scotty (Arfield) down the right and he got a good shot off. Lee Camp made a good save and I just reacted to that really and managed to tuck it away.”

Vokes, who rattled the crossbar in the first half, added: “We were very strong in the first half but I think we were very sloppy in the second half and we conceded.

“But as soon as we did concede we managed to bounce back as we do and got the all-important three points.

“It was lovely to get the winner.”

Clarets manager Dyche was pleased with the Welsh international’s winner adding: “It was a very good goal.

“The keeper made a good save and Vokesy was on the bits. They are good habits from the things we work on in training.

“They made it very hard, but we played out of the press well, and kind of softened their press, and that is some of the maturation from last season, the growth mentally, and that calmness to keep playing.

“I was pleased with that but there is still a lot more to come as a football unit.

“The habits are very good, the basics, the will, the demand, the structure, but we can be more productive in and around the box, and we’ll work on that on the training pitch and when we’re playing.”