Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Greive reveals ‘relief’ after opening scoring account at Tannadice
ALEX Greive admits the overriding feeling of scoring his first Dundee United goal was “relief”.
However, the Tannadice loan star is adamant his confidence never waned as he awaited his maiden strike in Tangerine.
Greive, 24, opened his account in his ninth appearance – albeit with only four starts – for United as Jim Goodwin’s men swept aside Arbroath 4-0 last Saturday.
While clear-cut opportunities have been at a premium for the New Zealand internationalist, and he has played much of his football in wide areas, Greive relished a cathartic moment in front of the Arabs.
“There’s a sense of relief, lots of relief,” he smiled. “It was nice to get that monkey off my back.
“You do think about that (not scoring), but I didn’t lose confidence at all. I always back myself to score before any match, and there haven’t been too many opportunities for me.
“A lot of the games we’ve had lately have been tight, so it was nice to take my chance – especially for the goal to come at Tannadice.”
Greive’s clinical finish against the Lichties – latching on to a Ross Docherty through ball before firing through the legs of Max Boruc – came minutes after he selflessly teed up Tony Watt.
“I didn’t need to think twice,” Greive said. “I knew he was in a better position to score, so I was always going to pass it.
“I would have heard about it in the car on the way to training if I hadn’t squared it!”
Expanding on Watt’s man-of-the-match showing, he added: “It was clear to see what an important player Tony is for this team. Never mind the two goals, he was tracking back and doing all the hard yards. It was a top performance.”