WATCH: Paul Smyth thankful to Michael O'Neill for Northern Ireland opportunity
The former Linfield man certainly repaid O'Neill as he come off the bench to score the winner against the World Cup qualifiers.
Smyth showed great composure to hold off two defenders before firing home from the edge of the box, becoming the first Northern Ireland player to score on his debut since George McCartney in 2001.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdSpeaking after the game the QPR man said: "I felt at home at Windsor obviously having played here with Linfield and the Under-21s.
"There was a lot of excitement at the start, but once I got my chance I kind of got nervous, but it's always good having nerves going into a game, and I thought I dealt with it well.
"I tried to work as hard as I could, and I'm thankful to Michael for giving me the chance."