It has taken Charlie Telfer longer than expected but can finally celebrate hitting his half-century.
An accomplished display at the heart of the Dundee United midfield in their crucial 1-0 win over Hibs eight days ago marked his milestone 50th appearance for the club.
When he signed from Rangers in the summer of 2014 there were great expectations on Telfer and now, two years on, at last he is fulfilling that promise.
It was no surprise, therefore, that he hailed the victory over the Hibees – a result that pushed the Tangerines level with the Easter Road men at the top of the Championship – as as a high point.
The 21-year-old said: “The way I felt after the game was the happiest I have felt in my career.
“I was just telling my family that it was one of the best nights I have had in football.
“It was definitely one of the best matches I’ve been involved in with United.
“The guys were delighted and you could see after the match just what it meant to us.
“Even at half-time, we were talking among ourselves and felt we had played really well.
“We then went on to win the game.
“The players are buzzing at the moment, as are the supporters.
“The turnout from the fans was amazing and when you are playing in an atmosphere like that you get an extra lift.
“I am thoroughly enjoying it just now and this is the first real proper run I have had in the team.
“I feel I have been able to add different parts to my game over that time and get a level of consistency.”
After the high of the Hibs match comes a potentially testing trip all the way down to Somerset Park to face Ayr United today.
Telfer insisted that there is no danger of the players thinking all the hard work was done last Friday and that they just need to show up to beat Ian McCall’s men.
He said: “For all that we enjoyed beating Hibs, I would stress that we are not going over the top about one result.
“This game at Ayr is as important as last Friday’s match was. You can earn three points just the same.
“We haven’t been down to Somerset Park yet this season but they did give us a tough match at Tannadice.
“I have heard from others that Ayr are getting better and better every week so it will be a tough trip for us.
“We are going to have to be at our best to beat them.
“However, the manager has said we are a focused group of players and I would agree with that.
“You can see that in training and in the way we prepare for games.
“Every part of our build-up is about trying to be the best you can be when you get out on to the park.”
Despite a resurgence in his form, Telfer has so far managed to score only once this season and that was against Peterhead in the Irn-Bru Cup in early September so he is keen to add goals to his game.
He said: “I am looking to score more goals and I was a bit frustrated that I didn’t do better with the couple of opportunities I got against Hibs.
“I guess it still showed that I have the confidence to get up there and have a go.
“It is definitely something I need to improve upon, though.
“I have been getting advice from the manager, with him having been a midfielder himself.
“Even the wee bits of advice have helped me a lot. They all add up and have helped make me a better player.
“Winning games has also helped me because last season there was just so much pressure on us going into matches.
“There is still pressure on us but we know if we play as well as we can – with freedom – then the result will come and we will get the goal that will win us the game.”
