20-goal milestone was always the aim for Hatters striker Morris

​Striker Carlton Morris was always confident that he had the ability to score 20 goals in a season after reaching the milestone for the Hatters against Middlesbrough on Monday night.

​The club record signing, who had a previous best of 11 in a campaign when he was at both MK Dons and Barnsley in the 2020-21 season, moved to 19 in the 1-1 draw at Reading last Wednesday night.

Morris then added another to his tally when Luton saw off Boro 2-1 in front of the Sky cameras, as having been felled by keeper Zack Steffen in the area, dusted himself down to find the bottom corner from the spot.

Asked if he had ever felt such a total was possible, he said: “Yes of course, I think that every season.

"I’ve been unfortunate with injuries in the past, but I know when I stay fully fit and as I get older and more mature, I know how to look after myself better.

"I think I’m reaping the rewards from that now.

"Two seasons with Barnsley, it was two half seasons as last season I was out for the first six months, but I know what I’m capable of when I keep myself fit.”

Morris’s success from 12 yards saw him become the first Hatters player to achieve the feat in the second tier since the legendary Brian Stein managed it during the 1981-82 campaign.

When hearing the stat, he continued: “As good as it is for me, it’s kind of like a team goal that we’ve made here as there’s nothing I can do without the boys out there.

"There’s some real unsung heroes within our dressing room, people like Amari’i Bell just churning games out, being fantastic every week.

"Everyone, I could go on and on, but it’s a team thing rather than an individual.

"Our dressing room has that humility, there’s no bad eggs at all, not a person in that dressing room that I can say a bad word about.

“We’re a good side, we know what we’re capable of.

"We walk into the dressing room at the training ground every day and it’s a pleasure to come to work with this group of people.

"The humility and the friendliness and just genuine enjoyment of coming to work every day, it starts there.

"It’s a strong foundation that leads to the sort of success we’re having.”

With Luton heading to Blackburn Rovers on Monday and then hosting Hull City the following Monday, with a two-legged semi-final on the horizon as well, plus a potential Wembley final to follow, boss Rob Edwards is hoping the forward hasn’t finished finding the net yet, adding: “It’s a fantastic achievement.

"He deserves a lot of credit, but I’d like to think he’s not done there.

"There’s another couple of league games, and another couple of play-off games, so there’s at least four, lets hope he can add to that total."