Irish Premiership: Jamie McGonigle pleased to 'get off the mark' against Loughgall

Coleraine forward Jamie McGonigle said he was relieved to score his first goal of the season against Loughgall in the Bannsiders' 2-0 victory at the Showgrounds.

The striker has endured a frustrating start to the season due to various injuries, but emphatically finished from the penalty spot to open the scoring for Coleraine on Saturday.

Matthew Shevlin added a late second to seal a welcome return to winning ways for the hosts, and McGonigle was happy to contribute to the victory.

"Itâ€TMs something Iâ€TMm not used to [being injured] especially when itâ€TMs niggles, theyâ€TMre more annoying but that was nice when Harky [Ciaron Harkin] won the penalty I was always putting my name forward and thankfully I converted it," he told BBC Sport NI.

McGonigle knew he had to hit his penalty with power and precision, having previously practiced spot kicks with Loughgall goalkeeper Nathan Gartside when both were together at Derry City.

"I played with Nathan Gartside before at Derry and I practiced penalties with him every day for six months," McGonigle explained.

"He is a really good penalty stopper and I had to smash it to have any chance of beating him. Thatâ€TMs me off the mark now and hopefully thatâ€TMs the start."

Next up for Coleraine is a home game against leaders Linfield, a fixture which McGonigle is looking forward to.

"When Linfield come down here itâ€TMs always a big game. The league table sums up how tight it is and how anyone can beat anyone itâ€TMs so competitive, so we need to be at our best next week to beat Linfield."