KYLE Lafferty says Northern Ireland must do everything they can to keep their Euro 2016 hopes alive when they face Ukraine in Lyon on Thursday evening (5pm).

A 1-0 loss to Poland in the opening round of fixtures leaves Michael O’Neill’s men with work to do to reach the next stage, although they currently sit above their upcoming opponents in Group C.

"It wasn’t a performance from the team which took us here," Lafferty told the media after Sunday’s narrow defeat in Nice.

"We lacked the fight and determination which got us through to the Finals. That meant we came away without any points.

"We knew it was going to be a tough game but it wasn’t a Northern Ireland performance."

The forward says his side still have time to make an impact on the tournament, having excelled in qualifying to reach their first major Finals in 30 years.

"We’ll look at it and put it right on Thursday," the 28-year-old explained.

"We want to go into the third game against Germany fighting for something. Every player who wears the shirt is lucky to get to do that.

"I’m sure we’ll have a better performance [against Ukraine]."

To view the full Euro 2016 programme for our players, click HERE.

KYLE LAFFERTY: NORTHERN IRELAND STRIKER ON UKRAINE

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