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Ben Parkinson aims to fill Barney Stewart's shoes at Falkirk It’s time for me step up and fill the Barney Stewart gap, says Falkirk forward. Falkirk forward Ben Parkinson says it is time for him to “step up” and help fill the gap left after the summer departure of Barney Stewart. The former Newcastle United striker, 21, joined the Bairns last January on a permanent deal but spent a chunk of last season out injured after playing a hero’s role in the Scottish Cup tie against Hearts at Tynecastle. That night, Parkinson netted and scored the winning penalty to send John McGlynn’s side through. At that point, with Stewart having been hooked at half time, it felt like the Durham-born forward was in line for a chance to be Falkirk’s No 1 striker. An extended run up top has still evaded Parkinson and he was on the bench for last weekend’s Scottish Premiership opener. Falkirk forward wants to earn run of games “I think when I initially first came in, that was the aim, to try and get into the team,” Parkinson said ahead of Sunday’s trip to Motherwell. "Obviously, Barney had just come back from loan and I got injured. Barney did really well and it was tough from there to get back in. But I think now, with him leaving and going on to bigger things, it's definitely time for me to step up. I've got a big job on my hands because he did really well, but I'm looking forward to stepping up and doing that. “I think I showed that when I first came in, scoring at Tynecastle. A couple of games before that, I was playing quite well too. And then since we've come back, I've managed to get a few goals in the League Cup. So, hopefully that stands me in good stead for Sunday. "I think we've just been trying to stay positive. It's early doors, we've got a lot of new faces. St Mirren were a good side and obviously the result didn't go our way, but I think we need to park that now and move on to the next game. It's early doors in the season and I think maybe things haven't quite clicked yet. But we're definitely looking to put that right.” Parkinson came off the bench last Saturday and made an instant impact. He showed great forward-play to get on the end of Deniss Melniks’ ball across the box to score just after coming on. It was a poacher’s finish. However, that leveller was chopped off after a VAR review for a handball by defender Melniks, denying the forward a morale-boosting goal. The striker said: “I wasn't focused on what happened before. I was just focused on getting in the box and putting the ball away. And that's what I did. Obviously, it was disappointing to see that it got chopped off. “And then seeing it again after the game, you're thinking, is it really clear and obvious? I think there's one camera angle where maybe it looks like it hits his hand. And then the other camera angle, you can't see a thing. "So, for me personally, I didn't agree with the decision. But there's nothing you can do about that now. You've got to move on from it.” On facing Motherwell, who Falkirk managed to go unbeaten against last term, Parkinson backed the team to go and get a positive result at Fir Park. He said: "Yes, I think we were one of the only teams to go there and beat them twice. And obviously, we had a decent record against them at home as well. So, we're confident. “Obviously, the game on Saturday didn't go our way. But I don't think that's anything to go against us going into Sunday's game. It's a chance to put things right. And obviously, they're going to be a good team. They've done well in Europe so far this season. “And obviously, beating Hibs the other day.It's not going to be easy. But we back ourselves. And we know that we can go there and do a job if we work hard for each other."