The smile on Robbie McDaid’s face said it all after opening his Linfield account on Saturday in a 4-0 rout of Ballymena United.
Questions were asked when the Blues were dumped out of the Europa Conference League by Latvian side RFS before slumping to a shock League defeat by Carrick Rangers.
But David Healy’s boys had all the answers, producing a performance of hunger, passion and energy, garnished with a ruthless display of finishing that simply blew away the challenge of Ballymena United.
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Joel Cooper and Kirk Millar had the Blues two up at the interval. Chris Shields then slotted home a spot kick before McDaid (above) earned the biggest cheer of the day with his strike – his first since moving across town from rivals Glentoran.
“I enjoyed the goal; it’s been a long time coming,” said McDaid. “I’ve had to be patient. I’ve just kept my head down and worked hard. I knew the goals would come.
“I’ve been getting into good positions, but every striker needs a little bit of luck at times. The ball just wasn’t falling for me over the last couple of weeks.
“It’s been a baptism of fire because I hadn’t really kicked a ball for close on three-and-a-half months before my move.
“To be thrown into tough European games, it was difficult to adjust. I was trying to get my fitness up, but I knew once I got up to speed, the goals would come.
“The lads put some great balls into the box, so it’s up to me to be there and try to put it in the back of the net. I’m thrilled to get off the mark and hopefully, it’s the first of many.”
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