Beattie hoping for starting place

Last updated : 13 February 2011 By BBC Sport

Swansea hero Craig Beattie has revealed he intended to pass before hitting their injury-time winner in the 4-3 win at Middlesbrough on Saturday.Beattie came on in the 76th minute and struck to seal the Swans' fightback from 3-1 down after 53 minutes.

But he admitted: "I tried to reverse it into Dobbs [Stephen Dobbie] and unfortunately for the defender it's sat up perfectly for me.

"I got a swing through it and it's landed in the bottom corner."

Beattie's powerful left-footed shot ended a comeback that began with Scott Sinclair's 60th-minute penalty and continued with Ashley Williams' scrappy effort eight minutes later.

The 27-year-old's goal prompted a joyous response among players, management and fans and left the Scotsman hoping his case for a regular place in Swansea's starting line-up is too compelling for boss Brendan Rodgers to ignore.

Beattie said: "I've started six games this year after I've come back from injury and scored four goals.

We could have scored more - Rodgers

"Joe Allen's going to be a superstar when he's older and Dobbs has scored plenty of goals in his career as well.

"Guys like Albert Serran and Kemy Agustin have played at the top level - we're very, very strong you know.

"We have a strong squad and obviously Jazz Richards is going to come on and be a top player as well and he's in the team at the minute and doing well.

"So the squad's very good, very strong."

But Beattie says he will continue to let Rodgers know how keen he is to win a place in the starting line-up as the promotion race comes to a head.

"I give him the eyes every day at training. I'm chomping at the bit, he knows that. All I can do is try and show when I come on that I do well and I've come on and done well and nudged the winner.

"So I can't do any more than I'm doing and the rest is the manager's decision. That's his to make.

"We know what the prize is at the end. A couple of the lads have played in the Premier League and everyone here wants to get there and we know what the prize is."

The win sent the Swans into fourth place in the Championship, six days after arch-rivals Cardiff City's Craig Bellamy hit a south Wales derby winner at Liberty Stadium.

Source: BBC Sport

Source: BBC Sport