Saturday’s goal hero, Macauley Bonne‎, had a dream game in his first league start for the Addicks.

Brought into the team‎ due to injuries to Lyle Taylor and Tomer Hemed, Bonne scored the only goal of the game to win a surprise three points for his team.

Fortuitous the goal may have been – the keeper parried the ball onto his shoulder – but like all good strikers, Bonne was in the right place at the right time.

He explained how he found out about his inclusion in the team to the South London Press:

“I just checked on my Instagram and at the same time of last season I was playing against Braintree Town in the Conference.

“Now I’ve scored the winner against Leeds – I couldn’t write a better story. From where I have come from, I couldn’t tell you how happy I am.

“You get little ideas in the week and then Friday morning when he (Lee Bowyer) flipped the board I knew I was starting.

“I’m still trying to process it myself. I didn’t even tell my parents.

“They came here today and they got here  bit late – my dad and my grandad saw me. I checked my phone now and they said: ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ It was a surprise.

“I always thought I would get slowly moved in, like I did getting half an hour against Barnsley on my debut. To be thrown in against Leeds I knew I need to be a man here. I’m 23. I’ve got to establish myself in the Championship.”

The Addicks first tried to sign Bonne from Leyton Orient in January, but had to wait until the summer before finally getting the deal across the line.

With Taylor, Hemed and Jonathan Leko ahead of him, there was widespread speculation that Bonne would go out on loan – something the player was warm to:

“At one point I was. I was speaking to my agent and saying: ‘I don’t want to be left out to dry’.

“I get that training is going to be helpful to me, but I want to be playing games and scoring goals.

“But I’m 23-years-old. I’m in the Championship. I’ve come from non-league, I’ve got to bite my tongue, wait, work hard and do what I can for days like today.

“He (Bowyer) could’ve put any other attacker in there today and he chose me. I’m grateful for that and hopefully I’ve shown him what I can do.

“I never expected to go straight in,it’s going to take me months and months of training. I’m still not up to speed with the Championship.

“I’m doing my extras and what I can in training so that when I am called upon, like today, I can produce. It was off the back of the shoulder but that’s what I’ve been brought in to do – scores goals. I’ve done it today.”

Patience proved to be a virtue‎ for Bonne, who put Saturday’s victory‎ down to the training regime at the club:

“I don’t think anyone would have predicted that. It’s the training – second to none, the tempo. Everyone wants to be better, like in the gym. Everyone is pushing to be better and it is paying off.”

Providing he recovers from Saturday’s endeavours satisfactorily, Bonne can expect to be in the starting line-up when Swansea visit The Valley on Wednesday evening.