Two-goal hero Ivan Toney felt he grabbed his opportunity with “both hands” in Scunthorpe’s 3-2 win over Bradford City.
Toney started alongside Paddy Madden in the Iron attack and, after being given the nod by Graham Alexander, the Newcastle loanee was keen to show what he could do.
He certainly didn’t disappoint, with the frontman producing a spectacular overhead kick to complete his brace, after opening the scoring with a cool finish on three minutes.
Speaking to The Iron PlayerHD, Toney stated: “I got my chance, and you’ve got to take it with both hands. I managed to do that, and get the goals for the team which led to a victory.
“If you’re put in the squad you’ve got to do your job, which I managed to do, and repay the manager for putting me in the side.
“As a player you want to be starting games. I repaid the manager for starting me, by getting the goals and helping the team to a victory.”
The 21-year-old’s finishing was clinical, with both his strikes coming at near enough the same point in the respective halves.
Speaking about his first goal, he said: "You’ve got to expect the unexpected. It came to me, and I just managed to put it in the back of the net.
“It was a great pass from Haks (Hakeeb Adelakun) for the second.
“The first touch wasn’t the best, but you’ve got to improvise and put it in the back of the net, which I managed to do with a bicycle kick.”
Matt Crooks’ header eight minutes from time ultimately proved to be the winner but, at the time, Toney explained the nerves were jangling heading into the closing stages of such a pivotal encounter.
The Iron hung on though and showed terrific defensive resolve to earn a massive three points, despite a barrage of pressure from Stuart McCall’s side.
Toney said: “It’s tough watching something like that. I was sat on the bench watching, and I was nervous for the boys. However, we dug deep and it’s a great feeling coming off the pitch knowing that we’ve won the game.
“Everyone was putting their bodies on the line, and fair play to Luke (Daniels) who made some great saves.
“All over, everyone played a part. The fans kept behind us, even when we were losing, so it was a good day for us.
“We’ve got to take all the positives into next week and, if we repeat this, who says we can’t win?”
See much more from Ivan Toney and Chris Lucketti on The Iron PlayerHD.