Andros Townsend used his right boot to spectacularly decide Everton’s FA Cup tie at Hull City because the winger feared shooting from distance would damage his fast-healing left foot.

Englishman Townsend confounded medical expectation to return to action on Saturday, only 27 days after sustaining a fracture in his foot in a game at Crystal Palace.

The 30-year-old could have come back even sooner after pleading with Rafa Benitez for a squad place in the new-year meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion.

Manager Benitez, keen to avoid a setback for one of his most trusted lieutenants, erred on the side of caution.

Unleashed from the bench at the weekend, Townsend emphatically made up for lost time, taking aim from 25 yards with the game poised at 2-2 and seeing his strike dumbfound Hull goalkeeper Nathan Baxter.

The goal represented a boost for Townsend’s starting claims. And he knows he has it all on to dislodge either Demarai Gray or Anthony Gordon, players Townsend counts among those who embody the character and desire Everton need to swing their campaign in a positive direction.

“It’s been tough because I’m not actually in that much pain, but the surgeon and specialist were telling me I had to wait six-to-eight weeks,” Townsend told evertonfc.com.

“As a player, it is tough to hear when you’re not in much pain, so I’ve been banging down the manager’s door.

“I felt I could have been on the bench against Brighton but he said it wasn’t worth the risk.

“Thankfully, he listened and put me on the bench at Hull and I was able to repay his faith.

“I knew I couldn’t shoot with my left foot, in case I did further damage, so had to shift it onto my right and, thankfully, it was able to wobble its way into the goal.

“I have been champing at the bit… being honest, I wasn’t at the top of my game before my injury.

“I started the season well but the in the past few games [pre-injury] wasn’t good enough.

“I was able to reflect, to see what went wrong in those past few weeks. Now, I am happy to be back.

“Anthony and Dimi [Gray] have been incredible in the past month, or so, so I knew I’d have to be patient and wouldn’t get straight back in the team.

“But I was able to contribute and show the manager I am still here and, maybe, give him a selection headache.

“Everyone in football knows how good Dimi is… the quality is there and with the manager we have, if you want to work hard, he will demand the best and get the very best out of you.

“He is doing that with Dimi and Anthony and myself. Players who want to work hard seem to be improving under the manager and long may it continue.”

It was Gray who drew Everton level following Hull’s first-minute opener.

The bargain summer signing traded intricate passes with Gordon before slipping a precise finish across Baxter.

Gray was fleetingly out in front as Everton’s top scorer after his sixth strike of the season but Townsend came on to emphatically draw level at the top of the Club’s goal chart.

Gordon, meanwhile, has directly contributed to four goals in his past three appearances.

“He has been incredible,” said Townsend.

“When I first joined, he had a lot of pace but maybe wasn’t confident enough in his own ability.

“But you have seen him grow throughout the season. The manager has been very tough with him, very demanding, but very patient.

“Anthony is a quality player and wants to improve.

“He is always asking questions, of myself, of Dimi and of the manager and other senior players.

“Players like that will always go to the very top if they have the ability to go with it.

“Anthony certainly has and it is great to see him taking his game to another level this season.”

Townsend had praise, too, for January additions Nathan Patterson and Vitalii Mykolenko – a debutant at Hull – noting the pair have “shown the right attitude, they’re hungry and ready to improve, not only personally, they’re ready to improve the team”.

Footballers of that ilk, insisted Townsend, are essential if Everton are “going to start climbing the table and go far in the FA Cup”.

Equally important, said the player, are the Evertonians who filled one end of Hull’s MKM Stadium on a brisk early-January evening.

“I was surprised when I looked in the away end and saw how many fans travelled,” added Townsend.

“They were behind the team from minute one.

“Even when we went behind, they were still cheering.

“The players warming up were getting standing ovations.

“The supporters were incredible, we were thankful for that and, thankfully, we gave them something to cheer at the end. Hopefully, we can give them more to cheer than we have recently.”