Millwall front man and goalscorer Bradshaw has kept the faith through barren times

Tom Bradshaw was delighted to open his account for the season as he scored both of Millwall’s goals as they came from behind to beat Stoke City 2-1 at The Den on Saturday to record their fourth win in five games.

“Yeah that was good,  enjoyed that one, ” said Bradshaw “I’ve said to my family – it’s been coming. I felt I’ve been unlucky with a couple of chances in previous games. I’ve been saying to myself that I just need to keep playing how I’m playing and keep getting in those areas.

“You know what football is like – sometimes, no matter what you do, it just doesn’t hit the net and then you have spells where you turn around, it hits the back of your head and goes in. 

“I thought that if I keep getting into those areas then it’ll come and it did come, it was brilliant. It was more: the fact we were 1-0 down, to get a really important goal to turn it around. It always means more when you score important goals, than just scoring the fourth or the fifth in a 4-0 or 5-0 win.” 

The Welshman has undergone tough spells at Millwall, long periods without a goal and he revealed that his family have been a big support to him during those times. 

“My Dad has always been a massive support, from the under 10’s, 11’s, 12’s and so on,” he said. “My girlfriend and little one are at most games. Some away games my little one they cant get to, because she’s only little but they support me through the highs and lows.”

Time on the pitch has been limited for Bradshaw but he is determined to make the most of the chances he gets in what is a competitive front line for Millwall, with the likes of Benik Afobe and Matt Smith also battling for a starting place. 

“The minimum that I feel I can give is 100 per cent effort,” he said. “Football is one of those where sometimes it’s just not your day but, the minimum you can do is put in all that you can on the pitch and that is something I hope I always do. I’ll always work where I can for the team. Defend when I need to and give the team what they need.

“This year is probably our strongest team in terms of depth. When you look at the bench, and the people that didn’t play today, we were missing the likes of Benno [Mason Bennett] and Afobe.” 

Following victory over the Potters, the Lions have lost just one of their last 10 in the league and sit third in the form table but the former Barnsley man thinks there is more to come. 

“I still don’t think we’ve reached the potential of this squad yet,” he said. “We just have to keep the run going and see where it takes us.”