On a very difficult surface at Vale Park, the focus was on playing to the conditions and being pragmatic and that necessitated the decision to substitute Russell, according to Duff.

The Reds chief was delighted with the former Huddersfield Town player's reaction immediately after it.

Speaking to BBC Radio Sheffield, Duff said: "One of the most positive signs was that Jon got taken off at half-time and he was the one encouraging everyone at half-time.

"He is new in and could have had his ego dented at that point thinking 'Why have I been taken off?'

"But with the three in there, they know their roles better as we have had more time working with them; we've had six or seven months working.

"It was not a day for trying to look good. It was a case of trying to be good and get a result."

Barnsley took the lead inside the first minute with a wonder strike from Luca Connell, only for Vale defender Nathan Smith to level just before the quarter of an hour mark.

Liam Kitching restored the visitors' advantage seven minutes later and Phillips sealed the win just after the hour mark as the Reds extended their unbeaten sequence to five matches and registering a fourth win in that spell.

The sixth-placed Oakwell outfit are three points clear of Wycombe with a game in hand. They are one point adrift of Derby, with a game in hand and four points behind fourth-placed Ipswich Town, having played two fewer matches.

Duff said: "I thought we were excellent. It was a horrible game, no getting away from that.

"It was not a classic and you wouldn't want to play on it (Vale pitch) every week, but you have to play what the game is telling you to do.

"I thought Bobby Thomas set the tone in the first five seconds of the game. He came over (Jamie) Proctor with a header and headed it 40 yards over their back three and then Luca (Connell) scores a good goal.

"Then we couldn't quite get the shape right and the frustrating thing is we concede from a second-phase set-play again, which is disappointing. But that's what Port Vale do - put you under pressure. The frustration was we were (just) going to change the shape. But we showed resilience.

"There was grittiness, determination, togetherness, spirit and fight and little bits of quality. We said we had to do it that way around."

Why Barnsley FC chief Michael Duff was delighted with Jon Russell despite substituting the midfielder at half-time in the League One win at Port Vale