Callum Paterson has promised to repay the faith of Neil Warnock for taking a gamble on him at Cardiff City.
The Scottish international defender made his home debut against Millwall at the weekend, five months since Warnock signed him from Hearts and nine months since he suffered the serious injury that threatened his career.
Warnock’s conviction that the Scotland full-back with five caps would add something missing to the Bluebirds was borne out by Paterson’s 54-minute cameo appearance off the bench in the goalless draw.
He offered a sound defensive display, attacking zest, and a physical presence to throw into the mix at set-pieces.
But when he arrived in Wales back in June, his future was in doubt and it needed an act of blind belief in the 23-year-old from manager Warnock for Paterson to see the route to recovery.
Peterson says: “It was amazing and when I came down he showed such faith in me to offer me a contract. Hopefully, I can pay him back as much as I can.
“Even when I was out injured and nowhere near the first team, the manager here knew what was happening with my recovery and when I’d be back.
“With just the name – Neil Warnock – everyone wants to play for him. He’s old school, but it’s nice to have that faith and backing.
“It’s obviously a massive step for me in my rehab and to do it here at home and grind out a clean sheet, I’m really pleased.
“I’m more than happy to play in the Under-23 games, get some game time and help them, but this is where I want to be. I want to do it on the big stage. Thankfully I got more game time and showed what I can do.
“I’m happy to play anywhere, but right-back is my favourite position because I get to see more of the game from there. I feel like I’ve got a good attacking threat about me from anywhere.”
Cardiff have now scored just one goal in their last four matches and lacked the invention to break down a determined Millwall.
But Paterson is convinced they can recapture the form of their early weeks when they won their first five matches.
“We’re not even halfway round the board yet, there are still loads of teams to play and lots of matches.
“It’s a little bit frustrating. But it’s another point on the board and another draw.
“In certain aspects perhaps we could have taken our chances better, but it wasn’t our day and we’ll go again on Tuesday against Ipswich.
Paterson’s appearance off the bench added energy to the Bluebirds’ display, but was not enough to stop them dropping out of the Championship’s automatic promotion spots.
Millwall’s Aussie defender James Meredith typified the Lions’ spirit which might even have brought them victory if they had been given a penalty when Lee Gregory was tripped by Sean Morrison.
“There are a lot of great teams in this division who play nice football, but they haven’t got our heart and togetherness,” said Meredith.
“That’s certainly one thing that’s built into Millwall and our culture. We look after each other, it’s a tight-knit group and we work hard.
“Our spirit can definitely take us higher up the table. I think we’re doing well having just come up through the play-offs.
“A lot of people probably didn’t expect for us to be doing as well. It’s a lot harder league, it’s faster, the players are much better and the teams have much bigger budgets.
“But we’re slowly starting to find our feet and finding out how we play. The team is coming together really well and we’ve got some good players. I think we’ll kick on.”