Bob looking to build on stunning debut strike

Bob McHugh has targeted more of the same after getting off the mark with a goal and an assist in Saturday’s 3-0 pre-season friendly win at Stenhousemuir.

McHugh made his first Morton appearance at Ochilview and opened the scoring with a searing shot from distance before laying on the second for team-mate Robert Thomson.

The former Motherwell and Falkirk frontman was pleased with his start to life at the Ton and hopes to build on that promising beginning in the season to come.

He told gmfc.net: “It doesn’t matter what’s at stake, as a striker you always go into a game looking for a goal – goals give you confidence – so hopefully it can be the start of many to come.

“It was only a pre-season friendly and boys are trying to get their fitness back and to find their feet, and we’re working on a few things with the team formation and stuff.

“So there are a lot of things that are more important, but just from a personal point of view, a wee goal and an assist isn’t a bad start.

“The goal was one of my better ones, to be honest. I just peeled off because we weren’t getting a lot [of joy] in behind, so I came in short to try and link up the play a wee bit.

“I noticed I had a couple of yards of space so decided to try my luck from 20 – 25 yards, and that’s maybe something I can chip in with more often this season, because I’ve got not a bad strike from that sort of range.

“Every goal is just as important as any other, so I’ll take them however they come, but it’s nice to see one like that fly into the top corner.”

McHugh set up fellow new boy Thomson with a clipped cross in the second half, and the 25-year-old insists he places almost as much importance on assists as he does scoring.

He added: “I think the assists are just as important as the goals. I had not a bad record in the past in terms of assists as well as goals, so if I can contribute in that way too I’ll be happy with that.”

Image: Ross Cameron