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Steven Crawford

Matthew Shevlin points to big reason behind his success as he takes his chances

Matthew Shevlin has made a habit out of taking his chances.

Perhaps the biggest one though is the chance handed to him by Oran Kearney two years ago when he brought him to Coleraine.

The 24-year-old has always been highly-rated since breaking into the Irish League as a 15-year-old with Ballymena United.

Read next: Kenny Shiels leaves Northern Ireland job as he reflects on historic reign

Linfield snapped the striker up in 2019 but his time at Windsor Park was a frustrating one as he made only 21 appearances in 18 months scoring twice.

Kearney was delighted to bring the frontman to The Showgrounds though and it has been a move which has pay dividends for both parties.

Shevlin's brace against Dungannon Swifts last week took him to 50 goals in a Coleraine shirt and the forward is full of appreciation for the faith Kearney has shown in him.

“I’m happy with that return and long may it continue," he said.

“The last two seasons I’ve been scoring consistently and a goal every two games is something that I want to keep going.

“I went through a few years of my career where I didn’t play as regularly or often as I wanted to.

“Oran gave me the chance to come to Coleraine and I snatched his hand off for it. It’s worked us brilliantly so far.

“He’s a very good man-manager and coach but his best attribute is that he just keeps it simple for me.

“He keeps saying to keep doing what you’re doing but if there’s something that I can improve on, he will give me tips on how to do that."

Shevlin's goals have helped claw Coleraine back into the league title race over the last two months.

It's a break from league action on Saturday though as they prepare for another cup battle with Cliftonville.

Shevlin has bagged four goals in his two previous visits to Solitude this season and he is hoping the Bannsiders can produce another bit performance to progress to the quarter-finals of the Irish Cup.

“We have a break from the league and it was great to set ourselves up nicely for that," he said.

“We’ve played well down there recently, we will go there full of confidence and hopefully we can progress. "

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