Fearless youngster Taylor Steven hopes his determined attitude will continue to catch the eye.
The St Johnstone forward impressed after coming off the bench in Tuesday evening’s friendly against Dunfermline at East End Park.
Steven wasted little time in putting in the legwork and showed he would not think twice about getting stuck in.
After his latest taste of first team football, the 19-year-old is now keen to play his part in upcoming Viaplay Cup fixtures.
“Not off the pitch, but on the pitch I can be quite an angry guy,” Steven smiled. “The manager likes that, to be fair.
“I just hate losing, that is all. That is what you need in football. You need a wee bit of attitude.
“I’ll score goals, hopefully. I like to be aggressive on the pitch and just want to try and win games.
“The manager is really good with me and gives tips on what he did as a player. He played at a really high level and scored loads of goals.
“Stevie May helps me with my learning too. The boys are great for encouraging you and they really help you.”
Steven was called from the bench early doors on Tuesday after fellow youngster Alex Ferguson was required to come off injured.
He said: “I thought I would maybe get the last 30 minutes or so. So it was good to get more of a run-out.
“I thought I managed to do pretty well and created a few chances. I was just trying to work as hard as I could.
“I kept fit over the off-season and did as much as I could to come back and get a chance in the first team.
“And during pre-season I have been getting fitness up and will look to get minutes in the legs.
“Hopefully I can get some minutes in the cup games too. My plan is to try and break into the first team.
“The manager said if you train well and play well then you will get a chance. He tells you how it is and that is how I like it. It has all been good so far.
“Cammy Ballantyne has done really well and took his chance at the end of last season. It just shows you how things can turn around.”
Steven spent time on loan at East Fife last season, alongside centre-half Liam Parker and Ferguson.
“I thought I maybe could’ve got some more game-time at East Fife,” Steven said.
“But it was a learning curve for me. It was good experience to be in about a first team changing room. It is a serious environment and boys will tell you how it is.”
On team-mate Parker, who started against Dunfermline, Steven added: “Liam is a good player, good on the ball. He’s strong, big and has everything it takes to play at a high level.”
