He was only on the pitch for 15 minutes, but in that time Duncan Watmore managed to turn Monday night's game with Switzerland in England Under-21s’ favour.
The Sunderland man was introduced by boss Gareth Southgate with the Three Lions trailing by a single goal.
And after winning a penalty for the equaliser, Watmore scored a second before teeing up fellow sub Chuba Akpom for the third in stoppage time.
England 3-1 Switzerland
UEFA European U21 Championship
Qualifying Group 9
Monday 16 November 2015
Amex Stadium, Brighton
Live on BT Sport
“I’m obviously delighted,” admitted Watmore, who was also named as Vauxhall man of the match following his cameo.
“You always want to start football games but when you’re on the bench you’ve got to make an impact and show the manager what you can do and try to change the game.
“That’s your role as a substitute and hopefully I did do that today, which I was very grateful for but we got the win and that was the main thing.”
It had been a frustrating evening for England before the final 10 minutes, with a solid and organised Swiss outfit keeping the Three Lions at bay.
But the former Altrincham and Clitheroe player admits he was closely watching the game and thinking about how he would be able to affect it should he get his chance.
“When you’re on the bench, you’ve got to study the game and look what you can bring to the game if you do get a chance,” he revealed.
FATV: U21s boss @GarethSouthgate and super-sub Duncan Watmore reflect on tonight's 3-1 win over Switzerland #ENGvSWI
https://t.co/WaRKVn8Szq
— England (@england) November 16, 2015
“Fortunately, I got that chance and I took it today. It was one of the games when it was looking like we were struggling to break them down.
“They were quite resolute in their defending so to make the breakthrough with Prowsey [James Ward-Prowse] taking his penalty very well at a crucial time in the game and under pressure.
“And then I got the next goal and Chuba got the last, so we did well.”
The result leaves England top of their group ahead of the Swiss, before the nations meet again in Switzerland next March.
And with the man of the match award tucked under his arm, Watmore left Brighton with thoughts of that fixture already on his mind.
“That’s [the award] always a nice bonus but what makes the difference is the fact that we’ve got 10 points at the top of the group and that’s the most important thing,” he added.
“We knew this game was big and we’ve now got Switzerland away and that’s also massive, so hopefully I can play well between now and then and we can come back for that.
“It’s an important win, crucial, so we can now go on from there.”
