Kevin Rutkiewicz said the return of Neil McLaughlin was a joy to watch as East Kilbride came from behind to batter Lanark United with a devastating second half display.
The Kilby boss, whose side lost 1-0 to Cowdenbeath in the Lowland League last week, was staring at a South Challenge Cup second round exit at half-time on Saturday, with the visitors trailing by a single goal.
However, EK equalised 90 seconds after the re-start through Kyle Munro before a further strike from the ex-Hamilton Accies man, a Reece McGuire effort and a double from McLaughlin earned a 5-1 victory.
Rutkiewicz admitted his side sorely missed McLaughlin’s influence in last week’s shock defeat and was delighted to see him back and taking his goals tally to four in his last three outings.
He said: “Neily is just a joy to watch at times and he does everything with a smile on his face.
“He just loves getting on the ball and has a natural enthusiasm for the game that rubs off on everyone else, particularly when he is on song.
“As much as they hate it, you can even hear opposing fans applauding him almost at times.
“He was a joy to watch on Saturday and that’s four goals in three games for Neily now. He’s on a bit of roll and consistency is the key for him and the team right now.
“To go 1-0 down at half-time wasn’t the plan because we’d been so dominant and probably should have been out of sight.
“But the boys stuck to their task, didn’t panic and kept on going.
“It was exactly what we needed after last week, banging in a few goals, but we don’t get any pats on the back for this because we should be winning these games.
“We are well aware of that and I think we did that in the right way in the second half, so I’m delighted with the day’s work.”
Rutkiewicz felt frustrated at the break after his side spurned chances to go in front but he insisted he didn’t need to read the riot act during the interval.
He added: “At half-time I just told them to keep doing what you are doing, don’t lose belief, don’t panic or get anxious because it is 1-0.
“Apart from the Lanark goal, the first half was quite enjoyable and our frustration was that chances went abegging.
“Scoring 90 seconds into the second half really does help. It’s a massive time to score and we are back in the game with our first attack.
“If they had held on for 10-15 minutes, maybe we get a bit nervous so the timing of the equaliser was crucial and they kicked on from there.”
Kilby now face a trip to Abbey Vale in a third round tie on Saturday, November 19.
This weekend EK are in Scottish Cup second round action when they host Caledonian Braves.
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