Tunde Owolabi says he felt like he was dreaming after smashing a hat-trick against Bohemians.
The St Pat’s striker was the Richmond Park hero on Monday night after scoring twice in the first-half before sealing the deal with a penalty after the break.
The Belgian has had to be patient since joining from Finn Harps over the winter as that was only his third start of the season.
But the powerful striker has given Saints boss Tim Clancy food for thought heading to Oriel Park for Friday’s clash with Dundalk.
Owolabi said: “It’s crazy, it feels like a dream if I’m being honest.
“I had to be patient - I would have loved to have played more and sometimes it was frustrating if I’m being honest.
“But listen, you’ve got to be patient, be professional and get your head down.
“You’ve got to work and I’m just thankful and grateful to God that when I did get the opportunity, I delivered.”
Owolabi continued: “I want to say a massive thank you to Tim for trusting me, for the rest of the coaching staff for believing in me and my teammates as well.
“It was a great win, especially because of the manner in which we lost against Shels on Friday. We knew we had to bounce back.
“We came into training on Saturday and Sunday with the hunger and desire to put things right and we’re just thankful that we were able to do so.
“It was a great performance from the boys. We all put in a shift and, yeah, it’s a great win, a big win, and we just have to continue now.”
Saints boss Clancy also hailed Owolabi for his professionalism even when he wasn’t getting the starts he wanted.
Clancy said last night: “We've had plenty of chats with him and he's a brilliant kid.
“The games he started for us this season, teams have sat off and there was a limited amount of space behind which suits his attributes.
“Tonight, we thought we could get success down the side of them. Last season he had a similar start at Finn Harps and didn't play until the second half of the season.
“You have to be patient and try and bide your time. He trains very hard every day and is a brilliant kid and things can change very quickly. Tonight he scores a hat-trick.”
St Pat’s and Dundalk both closed the gap on the top two Shamrock Rovers and Derry City who suffered defeats away to Drogheda United and Sligo Rovers respectively.
But Clancy said: “We're not going to start trying to chase Shamrock Rovers with the squad they have - it's probably chalk and cheese our squad compared to theirs.
“We're using a lot of teenagers and they have a hell of a lot of experience with great, great players as well.
“I knows fans of a lot of clubs are getting frustrated at not winning games that on paper they think they should be.
“But when you see Shamrock Rovers going up to Drogheda and Drogheda getting a win, coming off a four game losing streak until Friday and now they have won back to back, it's a mad league.
“I just hope that we will be on the right side of most of the results.”
Clancy confirmed that young midfielder Adam Murphy may not play against this season following surgery on a bad hamstring injury.
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