Aberdeen attacker Lawrence Shankland hailed his side’s spirit after they rallied from 3-1 down with three minutes to go to earn a point from their Scottish Premiership match against Dundee at Pittodrie on Saturday.
The 19-year-old played a pivotal part in a remarkable Dons comeback after replacing Adam Rooney for the closing stages.
Shankland won a penalty after being fouled by Dark Blues defender Kostadin Gadzhalov, which was converted by Jonny Hayes, before nodding a Shay Logan cross on for Ryan Jack to net the equaliser.
Goals from Gary Irvine, Greg Stewart and Gary Harkins had earlier cancelled out David Goodwillie’s opener but Shankland felt the Dons deserved a share of the spoils for their sheer persistence.
He said: “We have good character in the squad and we will play right till the end and that is what we did against Dundee.
“We looked out of the match but we managed to get back and get a point.
“It could be an important one, but we will just concentrate on ourselves and have to take it one game at a time.
“We will only worry about our games and pick up as many points as we can.”
Shankland, who joined from Queen’s Park in 2013, has already netted 19 times for Aberdeen’s under-20s this season but has yet to start for the first team.
He said: “Aberdeen is a big club and to get the chance to come on and play is amazing. I am delighted I was able to have an impact by getting the penalty and another assist.
“We have a really strong squad and the forwards have been doing really well and scoring goals.
“They have created a lot for the team and so I have to be patient, work hard in training and when I get my chance I know I have to impact the game as much as I can.”
Shankland is confident he can force his way into Derek McInnes’ team and used the examples of Jack and Peter Pawlett as proof it is possible to make the step up from the youth team to the first team.
He added: “They have taken their chance when it has come along and that is what I need to do to get myself into the team.”
Dons defender Ashton Taylor will struggle to be fit for the League Cup semi-final against Dundee United on January 31 after sustaining a knee injury during Saturday 3-3 draw.
McInnes said: “Ash has damaged his knee and it looks like he will be out for a few weeks.
“We will get him scanned on Monday and see how he is.”