Diary of a Sky Sports Reporter

In recent weeks, I've been fortunate enough to cover matches involving some of the most in-form strikers in the country. I saw Jordan Rhodes notch one of his 27 goals for Huddersfield this season and also witnessed Millwall frontman Darius Henderson bag his second hat-trick in the space of a few days, and third of the campaign. Last week I watched another forward in great touch in the shape of Leicester City's Jermaine Beckford as he bagged a hat-trick against local rivals Nottingham Forest, helped the Foxes win at leaders Southampton before notching a brace in the FA Cup home win over Swindon.

I've been critical of Beckford already this season, stating he's wasted his potential, but I'm happy to admit that I might be wrong - perhaps his best days could still be ahead of him. Although he took both goals well against Swindon and will go down in Leicester folklore with his display against Forest, it was his goal-less performance in the Championship game at St. Mary's that really caught my eye. He was a constant menace for the home defenders and ran himself into the ground before being substituted.

I think it's fair to say that wasn't the case earlier this season (career?) and is a good example to everyone that if you put the work in, your efforts will be rewarded. Well done Jermaine.

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