James Collins says it is an honour to become a Luton Town centurion as the striker reflected on a memorable week for him.
Though the Hatters lost 3-2 at QPR on Saturday, the front man’s appearance was his 100th for the club and he marked it with a goal.
That followed on from a debut goal for the Republic of Ireland on Tuesday in Dublin to cap off a 3-1 win over Bulgaria.
Collins signed from Crawley Town in the summer of 2017 and has been an integral part in Luton rising through the leagues to the Championship on the back of two successive promotions for the first time in their history.
On his appearance milestone at the weekend, the goalscorer said: “It’s an honour to play 100 games for this club and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it and I hope there’s many more games to come.
“It’s been a brilliant week for me, personally. To score in the week for Ireland and then get another goal today, as a striker, it fills me with confidence, but this is a team game and I’d much rather the three points.
“But you can only get three points if you’re scoring goals and, hopefully, I can continue to do that.”
Collins’ poacher’s finish in West London on Saturday was his fourth in four matches for club and country, and his fifth in seven Championsihp games this term, moving him onto a total of 49 goals in those 100 Hatters appearances. And, if you account for just his league games for Luton, he’s earned a formidable record of a goal every other game.
“That’s a great honour for me,” the 28-year-old said, adding: “That’s my job that’s what I’ve been brought to the club to do. I’m lucky enough I’ve been managed to keep my form over the last three seasons. I’m delighted with that, and to score one in two, I think a lot of people would take it.”
