FORMER Clarets goal hero Andy Payton believes that Jay Rodriguez can fire Burnley back into the Premier League by winning the Champion-ship’s Golden Boot prize.

Rodriguez has already gone two better than last season’s 15-goal return, thanks to a run of five in his last five games, including Saturday’s stunning late equaliser at home to Peterborough United.

Six of his 17 strikes have come in cup competitions.

But a return of four goals in as many league games have pushed the Clarets nearer to a top six spot, and Payton fancies the striker to come away with the division’s top scoring prize, and a place in the play-offs for the team, if that run of form continues.

“If he’s ambitious, which I’m sure he is, Jay has to want the Golden Boot,” said Payton, whose 27 goals in Burnley’s 1999/2000 promotion season earned him the old Second Division prize.

“He could fire Burnley to the Premier League if he can win it.”

Southampton’s Rickie Lambert leads the way with 19 in all competitions – including 16 in the league after 29 games.

“You have to look at the players ahead of you in the charts and want to overtake them,” Payton continued.

“You’ve got to try to be number one.

“Jay has to be looking for at least 20 league goals next. You’ve got to make your little landmarks and see where it takes you.

“I got the Golden Boot once in my career and it feels fantastic.

“Jay’s as good as where he is at the moment. I always look at the top goalscorers and hopefully he wants to be up there.”

Should Rodriguez be successful, though, Payton anticipates it will be even harder for Burnley to hang on to their homegrown striker in the summer, after fending off interest from Newcastle United in the last January transfer window.

“The more he scores the more interest there will be in him. It’s as simple as that,” said Payton, who earned a dream move to Celtic from Middlesbrough in the early 1990s after beginning his professional career at Hull City.

“If the club goes up it would be fantastic because then he’d have everything rolled into one.

“We have a chance of doing that in this league.

“It’s incredible when you think we were nearly in the bottom three after the Hull game in November. But we’ve been on the up ever since.

“We’ve still got work to do at home, but it doesn’t matter how you pick your points up as long as you get them.

“If we got enough to finish in the play-offs that would be great because we’ve done it before and we can do it again.”

And keeping hold of Rodriguez, who like Payton is a homegrown striker, is key.

“Being a selling club, which we have been in the past, I thought if we had a concrete offer then there was a good chance he would be leaving (in January). But I’m glad he’s stayed because he makes us stronger,” said the 44-year-old.

“He has quite a few assets. He holds the ball up better than I did, he’s good in the air. I wouldn’t say he’s amazingly quick, but he isn’t slow either.

“I’d say he’s fairly unique.

“He’s got a touch of class.”