KALVIN Orsi hopes that his first Morton goal can help put his injury woes behind him as he looks to be the man David Hopkin can rely on.

The former Aberdeen kid impressed in his first league start for Morton, scoring a fantastic diving header to put them 1-0 up against league leaders Dundee United, before Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland cancelled it out late on with a header of his own.

Despite going off as a precaution in the 52nd minute, the 22-year-old hopes that his goal can help him kick on in the second half of the season.

He told the Tele: “I’d like to think I’ve taken my chance well. I’m over the moon to have scored and I just need to take it from here and kick on now.

“It’s really pleasing because I’ve waited a while for my chance as I was plagued by injury at the beginning.

“I’ve really had to work hard to get myself back in contention to be selected for the team.

“Thankfully my chance came and I’ve been able to prove myself.

“This was my chance to stake my claim and I just hope I’ve done myself justice because the boys have been playing well recently.

“It’s all about me fitting in there now and if I can score again then that’s going to be the best way of keeping my place over a longer period of time.”

Orsi admits that conceding so late on against the Arabs was a bitter pill to swallow after it looked as if the Ton would take all three points home with them.

With Ton looking harder to beat in recent weeks, he insists that the grit and determination that Hopkin has instilled in his side is starting to come to the fore.

He added: “It definitely feels like it’s two points dropped.

“Before the game I’d have bitten your hand off for a point, but it feels like a defeat now to be honest.

“It’s a killer conceding a goal like that so late on because we were brilliant for the whole game.

“The boys worked so hard, tactically we were very good for the full 90 minutes and I thought we could’ve and were going to hold on for all three points, but that’s just the way football works.

“The boys have taken on what the gaffer is trying to do very well, it showed on Saturday.

“We’ve got a good bond and if we keep kicking on we can only keep getting better.

“We’re only three points off the play-offs now, so we’re right in the mix.

“We’re hitting a good bit of form at the right time, so hopefully we can continue this and finish the season strongly.”