The 13 minutes that he played wasn’t enough time to cause any real trouble for Livingston's defence during Saturday’s 0-0 draw, but he’s hoping to settle back in and give the Pars frontline a much-needed boost during the remainder of the Championship campaign.

Discussing the moment he was subbed on, the forward said: “It was amazing really, just to feel wanted and the fans congratulating me coming back.

“I’m buzzing to be back out there really. I’d say I was quite nervous, but obviously it’s part of the game and you need to get through it.”

The 21-year-old rejoined Athletic on a permanent basis last month after spending a period on loan from Bristol City, during which he made a great impression.

His two quarter final goals to help knock out Scottish Cup holders Aberdeen were memorable to say the least, but it was just days after that he badly hurt his hip against Raith Rovers and was put out of action.

“The experience I had when I was on loan last season just opened my eyes to men’s football,” he said.

“It was annoying helping out in the quarters and then not being able to play, but again you need to keep going and bounce back from it.

 “I need to get out there playing and thought it would be the right decision to come back.

“With such a serious injury you don’t want to jump into things, the three-week international break came up and helped me out a good bit.”

He said that Neil Lennon was a “great manager” who influenced his decision to settle north of the border.

Discussing the season ahead, Thomas commented: “We have got to be more clinical up top, I’m confident going forward, if the gaffer can believe in me there’s no reason I can’t believe in myself.”