STRIKER Paul Hayes believes he should be scoring more goals at Championship level for Scunthorpe United.

Last year he netted 19 times in a season which saw the Iron win promotion back from League One.

Almost at the half-way mark this term, he has netted only six times.

Two of those have been in the Carling Cup – and only one has been at home in the Championship this season.

That was in the 3-1 victory against Sheffield United back in mid-October.

And while the 26-year-old player is happy to continue in his own vital role of creating openings for others, he does want to net a few more himself.

"At the moment we are doing well but the goals tell you that maybe I am not doing as well as I should be doing," he confessed.

"Forwards get judged on their goals and maybe I should get in the box more and be more selfish rather than laying it off.

"The only way for me to change that is to go out and do well for myself and make sure I am good enough.

"I should be scoring more than I am at the moment.

"You have just got to get on with it. If you miss a chance you have got to make sure the next one that comes your way, you put it away – you have to be more clinical in this league."

But Hayes does believe United do have the scoring capacity to survive at this level this time.

"This season we are relying on four or five players scoring and that's good," he continued.

"When you can rely on four or five players to score a goal then you always have a chance to win a game."

Hayes is confident that will help Scunthorpe stay up this season – and that, he believes, would be the biggest achievement of his own career.

"I have experienced staying up in the Championship (with Barnsley) and it's an achievement in itself," Hayes continued.

"Personally if we stay up this season it's the pinnacle of my career – it's the biggest success I have had.

"Obviously I have won in the play-offs and gone to Wembley but staying up with Scunthorpe would be the biggest thing in my career with the finances, the crowds and the club we have here.

"To stay up, fighting above our weight, with the big clubs we are playing against, to knock some of those bigger sides into the league below will be the pinnacle of my career."