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Mc Conville has been at Brighton since moving from Linfield in 2021 Ruairi Mc Conville says his target is to keep his place in the Northern Ireland squad after making his senior debut on Friday. The 19-year-old came on in the 86th minute in NI's 2-0 win over Belarus in the Nations League in Belfast. Second-half goals from Dan Ballard and Dion Charles were the difference as Michael O'Neill's side aim to secure promotion to League B. "I'm sure the smile will stay on my face for a long time, " Mc Conville told BBC Sport NI. "To get on that pitch and hear the fans, it was amazing, and it's hopefully one that I will cherish for the rest of my life. "I just hope that I can push on now with my next aim being the camp in March and to that try and get into [the squad]. " How Nations League could be NI's back door to World Cup NI's 'transition' continues to gather pace ahead of big 2025 'We've got a lot of captains on that pitch' - Charles The highly-rated Brighton youngster is currently captain of the Northern Ireland Under-19 side, but missed this summer's home European Championships through injury. His call-up to the senior squad came after hamstring injuries prevented Paddy Mc Nair and Eoin Toal from inclusion, and with fellow defender Ciaron Brown suspended for Monday's final group game with Luxembourg, Mc Conville could be in line for a first senior start. "I've always I've always been ready, " Mc Conville said. "I've always been working to try and get this opportunity, and I'm grateful that it that it's come. "I've put my head down and hope there's many more opportunities. " The victory over Belarus was the first time Northern Ireland had named a starting XI which did not feature a single player from their last appearance at a major tournament in 2016. O'Neill's has a new nucleus of young players with only two members of the current squad over the age of 30. "That's what gives us the excitement that we may get into this team one day, " Mc Conville said when asked about the younger players getting a chance in the senior set-up. "Now that I've got a sniff, I'm gonna want to try and stay around the group. "There's a good excitement and we're all working hard. We all know what we're we're trying to do and we're trying to top this group first of all, and we we showed tonight that we're we're capable of doing it. " Scotland host Portugal in autumn Test WSL: Watch as Arsenal lead Spurs in north London derby Sublime to stupidity - '120 million' witness two sides of boxing The school run and playdate politics Parenting chaos, PTA drama and no alone time Why did Our Price Records disappear? The BBC journalist Sean Farrington and entrepreneur Sam White examine the retailer's fortunes Landing on i Player in 2025, Destination X with Rob Brydon A new high-stakes, high-flying competition where nothing is as it seems A former Time Lord shares music that inspires him Celebrating the music that actor Peter Capaldi cherishes and would like to bestow to the future When the All Blacks' head coach played club rugby in Northern Ireland Meet Jude Mc Atamney - the New York Giants kicker from Derry Ireland 'blown away' by visit from Andes crash survivor The Dutch You Tuber who plans to change NI football Sublime to stupidity - '120 million' witness two sides of boxing Bad-blood match demands England raise game for the Boks Taylor booed in narrow points victory over Serrano How Scotland's human blur Doak left £77m man in daze Better Ireland still seeking answers after vital win 'Unpredictable' Jones afraid to lose - Aspinall NI's 'transition' continues to gather pace ahead of big 2025 'Only a Roman can help Roma' - why Ranieri returned from retirement Nothing boring about 9-0 Chiefs - can Bills end their unbeaten run? The Boks and the blitz - can England keep faith in defence? Names on shirts & stop moaning about long seasons - King's vision for tennis Chelsea & Man City set for 'box office' WSL showdown Why are there so many international breaks? Former Man Utd player Forlan makes pro tennis debut. Video Former Man Utd player Forlan makes pro tennis debut © 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.