James Abankwah certainly made his mark on debut for Watford on Saturday, playing his part in a big 2-0 away win against Derby County.
The 21-year-old Irishman joined the Hornets on loan from Udinese in midweek, and manager Tom Cleverley threw him straight into the starting lineup for Saturday's trip to Pride Park.
Within a minute of kick-off, Abankwah had announced his arrival with a thundering challenge.
Abankwah was booked for the thundering challenge but would go on to impress on his first appearance for the club, as he and his fellow defenders kept a clean sheet in taking a valuable three points home from Derby.
After the game, Abankwah spoke to Watford's media team. Watford's Waterford native said that the presence of fellow Irish youngsters Rocco Vata and Festy Ebosele had helped him to settle in - and also laughed off the robust challenge that kickstarted his bow for the club.
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James Abankwah earns high praise after Watford debut
James Abankwah told the Watford FC media team that he did not think his foul had warranted a booking.
Abankwah said, "I saw the ball there and just decided to go for it! Obviously I got the booking for that, which I didn’t think it was."
The Ireland U21 international went on to say that he had enjoyed his first taste of Championship football, and that his compatriots had helped him to settle in at the club.
I've settled in really well. The lads have been brilliant with me, the gaffer, staff, everyone around the club has been really welcoming to me.
I think having Rocco and Festy around has really helped me to settle in and even to get to know some of the other lads a bit more. Both of them have been great with me so far.
Abankwah also said that manager Tom Cleverley had been brilliant in laying out clearly what he wanted from him in defence - and the praise went both ways.
Cleverley hailed the impact of Abankwah post-match, after he helped Watford to keep their first Championship clean sheet - and win - since November.
"It was a fantastic away performance and it's the clean sheet element that really pleases me the most," Cleverley said.
"I thought James Abankwah came in for his debut after training for two days and was fantastic. And the whole defensive unit really deserve that today, and especially Jonathan Bond.
"I saw a team that was really willing to sacrifice for the club and for each other. It was a real top performance."
Watford now sit just one point outside the playoff places, and will hope to build on the momentum of Saturday's big win at Derby.
It looks as though James Abankwah and the Irish contingent are set to play a big role in their push for promotion.
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