Northern Ireland put dampener on Cristiano Ronaldo's 100th appearance for Portugal I thought we were heroic. I'm amazed to be standing here and saying I am disappointed to come away with a draw. Northern Ireland - ranked 117 in the world to Portugal's third - struck on the half-hour mark with a well worked move started by Manchester United defender Jonny Evans, who found Kyle Lafferty. The striker slipped a lovely ball on the inside of Pepe which found McGinn running on and he made no mistake firing past Rui Patricio - it was the first goal Portugal had conceded at home in their last seven World Cup games. The Northern Irish were trying shots from all angles and Patricio was nearly caught out by an inspired effort from long range by Chris Baird shortly after the goal as the Fulham player saw the Portuguese goalkeeper off his line. The visitors, though, rode their luck on a couple of occasions in the remainder of the first-half especially when Craig Cathcart volleyed against his own bar but fortunately for the Irish rebounded to safety. The half ended in encouraging fashion for the Northern Irish as Portuguese frustration surfaced with not for the first time Ronaldo being the most prominent moaner waving his arms despairingly and having a go at Postiga. Ronaldo went desperately close to levelling the game, though, near the hour mark but Northern Ireland goalkeeper Roy Carroll made a great reflex save with his left leg. The Real Madrid star was to be denied again in the 70th minute as he tried to break free but Aaron Hughes stuck to his task brilliantly and somehow managed to deflect Ronaldo's strike away for a corner. However, the Portuguese finally breached the resilient Northern Irish defences as Postiga rifled the ball past Carroll for his 23rd international goal. Somehow, though, the visitors managed to repel waves of Portuguese attacks for the remaining 10 minutes with Carroll producing a great save from Silvestre Varela while Nani flashed a shot just over the bar. McGinn found it hard to believe he was able to play a key part in thwarting Portugal. "It is just an unbelievable feeling to score against Portugal, as well as it being my first international goal, so I am just over the moon," said the Aberdeen player. Coming from a small village in County Tyrone, as a fan admiring players like Ronaldo and Nani then having the chance to actually play against them is something else. Obviously to score against them that's something else too! To score my first international goal is just fantastic and to come out here and score it against one of the world's best teams is great. McGinn was unable to hold down a regular place at Celtic prior to his summer departure and has also been in and out of the Northern Ireland side. Injuries have played their part in halting the 25-year-old's progress but last night's result went some way to making up for his struggles. "Quite honestly, I have been playing with a smile on my face," he said. I've obviously come back from the injury problems I've had, have scored three in three with my club and I have been working really hard. I am enjoying life at the minute, so long may that continue. Definitely, moments like this are a way of paying off for all the hard work behind the scenes.