Rushian Hepburn-Murphy said that his brace for Swindon Town against Tranmere Rovers has massively helped to boost his confidence in himself.

The 25-year-old twice fired home after charging in behind the Tranmere defence, his first goals since October due to a combination of injuries and a difficult run in front of goal.

When asked about whether finding the back of the net for the first time in 544 minutes of football helped to raise his confidence, he said that it had felt like a big weight off his shoulders.

He said: “It has been a long, long time coming but I am glad to be back on the scoresheet today and to get two of them.

“The service was unbelievable, Dokes [Udoka Godwin-Malife] coming in off the left and we all know what his quality is like, he is quick, he is powerful, and once he gets past his man he picked his head up and I just made a run inside and then, fortunately, he finds me.

“Sean [McGurk], I know what his quality is like, so as soon as he got on the half turn I made the run and he found me again.

“[The goals helped] massively. I thought I was playing c*** up until I scored the first one and then I scored it and confidence is through the roof.

“I didn’t feel like I could do anything wrong after that, things kept going my way and I kept getting the ball and taking on my man and I pretty much got past him the majority of the time.”

This was the first time in the league all season that Hepburn-Murphy had scored in a game that he had started, and he was pleased to ditch the “impact player” tag.

He said: “I have had the impact player tag on me for quite some time, so it was nice to start today and nice to score two goals.

“I don’t think that I have started many games this season, probably under ten, but it was good to get the start and then to get on the scoresheet twice.

“I am enjoying my football here and playing a lot more now, and today showed how much I am enjoying my football here.

“It’s just the same feeling of when you are a kid and you just get on a pitch and are playing football, that is all I really care about.”