Dundee’s on-loan striker Carl Finnigan admits that he cannot remember the last time he scored before he hit the back of the net on Tuesday night against Falkirk.
With just three minutes of normal time remaining, the 25-year-old Englishman showed remarkable calmness to beat Bairns keeper Michael McGovern and salvage a precious point for the Dark Blues.
Finnigan has endured a frustrating time since he joined St Johnstone in the summer with his path into the team being blocked by Fran Sandaza, Marcus Haber and Cillian Sheridan.
Now though, having broken his drought, he is hoping his counter against his former side Falkirk will be the start of a rich vein of goalscoring form for the Dark Blues.
Finnigan said: ”Thankfully, I managed to keep calm when my chance came. I have been working hard this season on my finishing as that is something which has maybe let me down in the past.
”Often I have been playing well in games but haven’t got goals and that’s something I am looking to change now.
”Ultimately, that is what I am judged on.”
When asked when he had last scored, he said: ”Wow, that’s a good question it wasn’t for St Johnstone, that’s for sure!
”I have been playing right mid whenever I have come on for them. But against Falkirk I was asked to play up there right through the middle for a team that like to get forward and put crosses into the box.
”I am looking upon this as a big opportunity to play regularly and get more goals before the campaign finishes.”’Itching for a game’It was a whirlwind start to his Dundee career with Finnigan only meeting his new teammates a few hours before kick-off on Tuesday.
He said: ”The move came about very quickly. I had contact from the club on Monday night regarding it and then we speeded things up with the aim of coming to Falkirk and being involved in the game.
”I only met the lads half an hour before the game in the hotel pre-match. I didn’t know a lot of their names to be honest but I had done a bit of research on Monday night and I know faces from playing up here.”
He added: ”It was great that it was all pushed through to let me play against Falkirk as I have been itching to get a game for a while.
”It’s a season where I’ve managed to stay fit but unfortunately I haven’t managed to get a regular start up to now at St Johnstone.
”It was like a breath of fresh air to find that the manager here really wanted me and it was a chance to come and play between now and the end of the season.”
Finnigan also thanked Saints boss Steve Lomas for his understanding in helping him secure his move to Dundee.
And while he admitted he still needs to work on his sharpness, he would love to be involved in the Dark Blues’ crunch game against league leaders Ross County on Saturday.Quashie no go?Finnigan said: ”I have had a lot of contact with Steve over the last couple of weeks because I have been in a situation where I want to play football.
”But Steve has been brilliant with me as he knows how frustrated I have been not getting a game at Saints and he has helped me out with this loan deal so I can come and play.
”Injuries haven’t helped me over the years and it is time to prove that I can stay fit and score goals. But it is a long time since I played 90 minutes competitively.
”Even practice games it has been 60 minutes or 45 minutes so I realise I have to work on that sharpness but I know it should come back the more I am involved with Dundee.”
Meanwhile, former Scotland player Nigel Quashie was at Dens on Thursday, with Smith determining his fitness level before offering him a deal.
Smith is also set to reveal why star winger Nicky Riley did not feature against Falkirk.
The former Celtic man came off the bench at Queen of the South last weekend but was not even listed in the squad to play the Bairns.
However, Smith has been playing his cards close to his chest.