Former Cliftonville hero Hale was called into the squad following a protracted process involving Fifa to conclude an international transfer from the Republic of Ireland, however he failed to make his debut in the last double-header.
The Ross County striker was expected to play against Switzerland or Sweden in the recent international window but surprisingly wasn’t given any game-time.
Northern Ireland drew 1-1 with the Swiss at Windsor Park before suffering a 5-1 defeat away to Sweden.
O’Neill made five second-half substitutions in Stockholm but didn’t feel it was the right time to give Hale his big debut.
Former Northern Ireland captain Magilton, who informed Hale of O’Neill’s interest after the 2024 Irish Cup Final, says the 26-year-old can still deliver on the international stage.
“His time will come, there is no question of that in my opinion,” said Cliftonville boss Magilton.
“He will be disappointed – Ronan Hale gets disappointed over being disappointed, and that’s what makes him such a top player. He has to manage that.
“Coming away with an international squad doesn’t necessarily always mean you are going to play.
“I went on five or six trips with Billy Bingham and never played a minute until Billy felt it was right for me to come on and play.
“That was the start of it for me.”
Jim Magilton believes Ronan Hale must remain patient to get his chance with Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland boss O’Neill said after the match in Stockholm: “It’s very difficult in that situation, you can throw on another player and play him slightly out of position, but at that time, we were trailing in the game 5-0.
“I have to protect the morale of the team a little bit, the team can get very disjointed at that point in time.
“Those players will get their chances. They will go back to their clubs, they have to get minutes and do well. This is Ronan’s first trip, he will understand what we want from him from what he’s seen in training. I just felt the subs that we made were probably the right ones on the night.”
Hale signed off from Cliftonville in style after scoring twice in the Reds’ famous 3-1 Cup Final win over Linfield and he’s made a big impact at Scottish Premiership side Ross County.
The Belfast man represented the Republic of Ireland at Under-19 level and the process of switching his allegiance back to Northern Ireland took some time.
“Patience is key for Ronan,” added Magilton, who won 52 caps for his country.
“It’s not a virtue bestowed on many of us, especially on young Ronan Hale – he is not the most patient guy, but he will learn that when the time is right, Michael will throw him in.
“Michael is obviously a huge admirer of Ronan, otherwise he wouldn’t have gone to those lengths to get him. Ronan just has to be patient and his time will come.”
Next up for O’Neill’s side are June friendlies against Iceland and Denmark before the start of World Cup qualifying in September, where Germany await along with Luxembourg and Slovakia.