Hamilton goalkeeper Michael McGovern has cherished his Euro 2016 experience so far, and admits victory against Ukraine today is a must if Northern Ireland want to prolong the dream.
Michael O’Neill’s side fell to a 1-0 defeat to Scotland’s qualifying opponents Poland in their opening Group C match on Sunday.
The Ulstermen will bid to bounce back from that disappointing loss when they face Ukraine in Lyon this evening and shot-stopper McGovern acknowledges that anything less than three points will spell the end of their tournament.
He said: “I’ve loved the experience, I’ve loved everything about the tournament so far. The game, the atmosphere and the build up, I’m just trying to soak it all in and enjoy it.
“We know what we need to do going forward and we can’t think about the Poland game, we have to concentrate on the Ukraine game.
“That’s the most important one now and if we go out and win on Thursday, which I know we can, then things are completely different.
“Ukraine are probably going to be more physical than Poland so we know what we’re up against, it’s a good challenge for us.
“The good thing about football is that you always get a chance to put things right in the next game.
“Ultimately this is a cup final for us, we need to perform and we need to win otherwise we’ll most likely be out.”
