JORDAN RHODES made the most of an unexpected starting opportunity as Town dug deep to clinch a highly encouraging three-point haul.

Down on the teamsheet as a substitute, he was promoted to the starting XI after Gary Roberts withdrew after feeling ill during the warm-up.

And the 21-year-old top scorer, who signed a new contract through to 2015 on the eve of the match at the Memorial Ground, needed just five minutes to make it 18 goals for the season.

Rhodes might have had a hat trick, because he fired over an open goal from the rebound after Joey Gudjonsson hit a post seven minutes later, then had a 54th-minute penalty saved.

But there was no doubting the quality of his successful strike, slotted past keeper Conrad Logan with his less-favoured left foot after a neat nod-on by Benik Afobe.

And it proved enough to beat a Bristol Rovers side desperate to deliver on Stuart Campbell’s first home match as caretaker manager.

The West Country team will feel aggrieved after having two goals disallowed by stand-in referee Chris Powell during a frantic finale.

The Dorset-based assistant put down his flag and took up the whistle after Wiltshire official Brendan Malone came off injured in the 77th minute.

Malone’s willingness to let the game flow in the face of some crunching challenges hadn’t gone down well with the home fans in a 7,380 crowd, Rovers’ second-highest of the season.

But Powell was even less popular after chalking off James Tunnicliffe’s deflected long throw, for a foul on keeper Alex Smithies, and skipper Will Hoskins’ close-range shot, for offside.

Before their late push, however, Rovers had been so well contained by resolute Town that their only real efforts on goal were from outside the penalty area.