JACKIE McNAMARA today hailed striker Mark McGuigan after seeing him net his maiden Firhill goal in Partick Thistle's 1-1 draw with Falkirk.

The forward has become an instant hit with the Jags faithful after agreeing a short term contract with the club until the end of the Irn-Bru First Division campaign.

A deal is in place that will keep the former Abertay University student at Firhill next term and McNamara has been delighted with his latest acquisition.

He said: "Mark has been excellent for us.

"He took a knock in the first half on his elbow and was a bit laboured with it, hope-fully it is not too bad.

"His all round game is good. He is not just a big lad you put up front, he can play, he gets the ball under control and passes and moves, which is important.

"Plus, he is intelligent, which makes it so much easier. You can pass on instructions and he takes it in.

"He will be signed up for next season. We agreed everything before he signed."

While McGuigan savoured his first Firhill goal, it wasn't to prove a winning one for Thistle as Steven Pressley's side fought back to claim a share of the spoils through Blair Alston.

Victory for the Jags would have seen them climb to third place in the standings but McNamara was left to rue a frustrating performance.

He said: "I thought we played some good stuff but in the second half we stopped passing the ball at times. We still had some opportunities.

"Falkirk came into the game in the second half and got a lift from the fact it was only 1-0. We needed to get the second goal."