"IT'S amazing what a goal can do," laughed Accrington Stanley hero Paul Mullin after his strike saw of one-time European kings Nottingham Forest in the Carling Cup first round.

In Stanley's first ever clash in the competition, they held off the League One high-fliers live on Sky on Monday and will be waiting anxiously to hear who they get in the second round tomorrow (Sat), when the draw is made live on Sky at lunch-time. All the Premiership teams - except those in Europe - will be in the hat.

But for Mullin he suddenly had the eyes of the nation on him and he admitted he was a bit stunned by all the attention in the days following his goal in the memorable 1-0 win.

"I have had Talk Sport on the phone, BBC North West, Sky, everyone!" said the striker, who was celebrating his first goal of the campaign.

"It seems like my phone has never stopped ringing since Monday night. I was getting phone calls, texts and messages from all over the place! It is amazing what a goal does for you.

"I have actually got a decent record of scoring on Sky television so I have been getting some stick for liking the cameras!

"I scored against Grays, Morecambe, Hereford and now Nottingham Forest so let's hope we get a good draw and can have another television game and a decent crowd."

For a striker who has spent nearly all his playing life in non-league, it is great for the 32-year-old to get the acclaim - although he did leave some of the national journalists confusing him with his brother John, who plays for Tranmere.

"People who don't know are always getting me mixed up with John. In fact, Forest striker Neil Harris came up to me at the end of the game and said "Well done, John". I just accepted it.

"John did get his first goal of the season on Saturday too so it is a bit freakish really!"

Mullin admitted his winner against Forest wasn't a stunner - hitting defender Danny Cullip's backside first - but it was vital.

"Rommy (Boco) went to volley it and I just got there first. It probably was going straight to the keeper but the deflection took it beyond the keeper's reach - but I don't mind.

"I am never going to score a wonder goal like Welchy's against Stockport. You saw that in the first minute against Forest when the ball came to me quite far out and I pretended I was crossing it because it was so far off target. I don't know what happened - I will leave the spectacular ones to the others!"

But he now hopes there are plenty of goals to come as him and Rommy Boco are finding their feet in a new forward partnership.

"I had my hernia operation and didn't play 90 minutes in pre-season so I was probably a couple of weeks shy in the first couple of games. It seems mad but it is things like the timing of headers which take time to come.

"But I feel I am getting better with every game. It is a newish partnership with Rommy but the signs are there that it could be a good partnership.

"Rommy is a bag of tricks and he pops up everywhere and, despite his smaller stature, he isn't knocked off the ball easily. Hopefully, if we are the front pairing, we will work well together and the goals will come."

And he is waiting for the draw with baited breath ahead of tomorrow's League Two clash with Rochdale.

"I would like Tranmere to play against John but then there are the likes of Manchester City and Bolton in there and a lot of the Liverpool lads want Everton," said Mullin.

"It is just amazing that Accrington Stanley's fairytale keeps going. Nine times out of 10 things seem to come off for us. I don't know why!

"But we do seem to rise to every new challenge. A lot of the lads have been here a long time now and we have almost grown up and learnt things together.

"But that was only one game and the main thing for us is the league. We want to make sure we get enough points as early as possible to secure our league status for next season.

"If we have a little cup run along the way, though, it will be very nice."