Hitman keeping feet on the ground following brace against Leeds United.
Striker Liam Hearn says the two goals that he scored in tonight’s eye-catching win over Leeds United will give him confidence going into the new season.On what was his first appearance in over eight months – and his non-competitive Mansfield Town debut – ‘the hitman’ came off the bench and netted a quick-fire brace to shoot down the Championship club.
“I was enjoying watching [the game] from the bench knowing that I was coming,” said the 28-year-old.
“[For the first goal] I anticipated the ‘keeper coming out. I thought he was going to get to the ball first, but he hesitated and as soon as he hesitated I managed to nick in then he just took my legs away and it was a penalty.
“I passed the book on [about taking the penalty] at first then had a word with myself, told myself that I needed to ‘man up’ then picked the ball up and put it away.
The striker continued: “It’s been a while [since I last played]. Obviously training is different to games and playing against Leeds United in a massive game I didn’t fancied missing especially when I’ve just come back.
“But then I had a word with myself and took [the penalty].”
When asked about the significance of the two goals on a personal level, the hitman said: “It’s just about confidence.
“To go down the road that I’ve been down over the last two years [with injuries] and to come here and use the facilities that they’ve offered me, get the treatment that Chris [Bowman, physio] has given me, and get the confidence that the gaffer and all the lads put in me – [it feels good] to repay them with a couple and come through 30 minutes unscathed.”
“It’ll give me confidence. I’ll take each day as it comes, but one thing that is important is that I need to keep my feet on the ground.
“There’s no point getting ahead of myself. It’s a pre-season friendly and there’s other strikers that have been doing well and scoring in other games, so I’ve just got to keep doing what I’m doing and hopefully I’ll get my chance at the start of the season.”
