Dundee’s Craig Wighton insists he will not be bullied or outmuscled on the pitch any more as he reaps the rewards of hitting the weights in the gym.
The teenager was outstanding once again on Saturday against Inverness, scoring his side’s first goal and winning the man-of-the-match award.
Caley are a big, physical outfit but Wighton took all they could throw at him in his stride.
That is something he admits might not have happened when he first broke into the side he has supported all his life.
Now, though all the hours of hard work lifting weights with his good pal and team-mate Cammy Kerr are paying off.
Wighton said: “It was hard when I was 16 or 17 playing against grown men and I maybe wasn’t ready physically.
“It was difficult and there was a lot of pressure on me at that age.
“I was maybe playing one or two games and then I was out for the next few.
“So I never got that run of games and at 16 or 17 you can only be so strong.
“But I am 19 now and I am getting a run in the team.
“Cammy and I are in the gym most days getting stronger so we will keep that going as it has definitely helped since the start of this season. It is really paying off now.
“Inverness are a physical side and you know what you are getting when you play them.”
Wighton added: “Even before the start of this season, the fans have wanted me to play.
“But the manager has been good with me. He has waited and waited until the right time.
“He obviously feels that is now and I am definitely a lot stronger and confident that I can go and put performances in every week.
“Whereas before when I was up against players like that (Inverness) I was maybe bullied a bit more.
“I have a lot more faith in myself now.”
Honours were fairly even in the first quarter of Saturday’s game with both sides struggling to carve out clear-cut chances.
Indeed, it was mostly a war of attrition with a succession of free-kicks and wasteful passes disrupting any flow of play.
The home side finally had a chance in the 21st minute when Kerr dug out a cross from the right into the Caley box with Marcus Haber directing his header just wide.
However, the deadlock was finally broken in the 25th minute when Wighton controlled a pass from Tom Hateley, spun and then advanced into the Inverness box before calmly curling a shot low past Caley keeper Owain Fon-Williams and into the corner of the net.
Shortly after, Wighton went down under a challenge in the Inverness box with his team-mates shouting for a penalty but referee Andrew Dallas was not convinced.
Caley huffed and puffed looking for an equaliser but Dundee held on to their lead as the teams headed down the tunnel at half-time.
The Dark Blues came close to doubling their advantage in the 54th minute when a Paul McGowan 20-yard shot was deflected just wide of the goal.
However, Dundee did finally give themselves a two-goal cushion in the 60th minute. Hateley sent a free-kick in from the wide right with centre-half Kosta Gadzhalov rising highest to bullet a header past Fon-Williams from six yards.
Inverness did pull one back in the 81st minute when Lewis Horner sent a cross into the Dundee box with Carl Tremarco heading past home keeper Scott Bain to make it a fraught finish for Hartley’s men.
Caley were reduced to 10 men deep in stoppage time when Horner was given a straight red for pulling back Wighton as he raced clean through on goal with Dundee seeing out the game to secure a precious three points.
Wighton has certainly grasped the chance to shine following the departures of strike pairing Greg Stewart and Kane Hemmings in the summer.
And now he is determined to keep his place in the team.
He added: “I think everyone gets frustrated when they are not playing but you can’t let it affect you.
“You just have to keep your head down and that’s what I have done.
“Since Kane and Greg left in the summer, it has been an opportunity for the forward players.
“Somebody had to take that and hopefully I can keep myself in the team now.”
