"The goal's good but the three points is more important" - Patience pays off for Town's match-winner Harker

But the striker took his opportunity against York, netting his first goal in senior football to seal a precious victory for his side.

It was only Harker's second start for The Shaymen since his summer move from Burnley, with his other eight appearances coming off the bench.

The 22-year-old admits he's had to bide his time.

"Yeah but you keep going, when you come on, you keep going," he said.

"I got my chance on Tuesday and scored my first career goal.

"It was amazing, you're always thinking you just need that first one to get you going and now I've done it, it's amazing.

"I've seen Kian (Spence) by the byline and I know he's reaching for it, he's cut it back and I just thought 'clean connection on it, get it across the keeper' and that's what happened."

Harker was at Bury from aged 14 to 18, and then joined Burnley, staying at Turf Moor for four years

While at Burnley, the frontman had a loan spell at Hartlepool in the National League at the start of 2020 that was cut short due to Covid.

"Because we played in the same league when I was in the youth team, they'd seen me play and got me in on trial, and I scored a couple of goals in a couple of games there," Harker said of his move to Burnley.

"Sean Dyche was the first-team manager and the environment was that you've got to work hard, it was good.

"I trained with the first-team but was never really close to playing for them because it was such a big step up to the Premier League.

"I missed a good 15 months of my football due to my knee injuries."

Harker dislocated his knee twice, requiring surgery and admitted he feared whether he would come back the same player.

"At the time, yeah because you're knee is massive, you're in a lot of pain," he recalled.

"The rehab there was the best of the best, so you get rehabbed really well.

"I rehabbed it the first time, thought it felt good, and then freakishly, went to cross a ball, and it came out again.

"That's when I had surgery because if it was coming out when I was crossing it, it was going to happen more and more, so I needed it fixed in.

"It was very tough mentally, especially after the second time, the surgery.

"It's never easy, any player knows injuries are never easy especially a recurring one, but you've got to get on with it, it's part of the game, everyone gets injured.

"I think it made me mentally stronger, to keep going. It does push you, mentally you have some dark days."

Harker was offered a deal to stay at Burnley in the summer.

"I wanted men's football, this is what I want, I've always wanted it," he said.

"Playing in the under 23s, it's nothing like men's football, I want the crowd to play in-front of.

"I'm glad I'm here.

"There were a few other offers, a few in the league, but I wanted to come here, prove myself here first and then go up."

Harker's patience for his Town career to kick into life has been mirrored by the Town fans, who were finally rewarded for their support by Tuesday's morale-boosting win.

"At first we weren't poor at all, we were playing well but we couldn't win, and then your confidence drops," Harker said of Town's start to the season.

"Then when you've lost a few and you go behind in a game, you feel it a bit.

"It's not that you go under but you lose confidence, and that's what we've lost.

"We just went for it on Tuesday, and I think that showed to the fans our fight, that's what we need to do every game, every game."

Next up for Town is a visit to Maidstone on Saturday, a game in which Harker should keep his place after his match-winner on Tuesday.

"Mentality for us I think is big, our mentality," Harker said.

"Go into every game the same, it's 0-0, if we can press and work, before any of our football comes, we've got to do the ugly bits first.

"We wanted this result for the fans, for the club.

"Because the last few games especially, we've not played great, the games before that we did but we've not got the results.

"But now these next few games, it needs to be three points, three points, and then we can start building on how we play.

"The goal's good but the three points is more important for us."