Stevie Mallan says his four-month wait to be involved in Barnsley's matchday squad has been longer than expected but it has also made him more determined.
The 21-year-old midfielder, who signed from Scottish second tier side St Mirren in the summer, has struggled to break into Paul Heckingbottom's first team squad. He is yet to make an appearance for the Reds but, after impressing for the under 23s recently, was on the bench for the first time on Saturday for the 3-0 home loss to Derby County.
Mallan told the Chronicle: "It was good to be in the squad. It's something I have waited for since I came down and it's good for myself and my family to see all the hard work starting to come into place. The next step is obviously to get onto the pitch. I would say it's been a longer wait than expected. When you are not playing, the weeks drag out and you just want to show what you can do.
"Hopefully, now I have started to get a sniff, I can get involved more and show the manager what I can do on the pitch. It's definitely been a mental test for me and I have learned more about myself in the past four or five months than ever before. I went from playing every week to not playing. I spoke to a lot of people to keep me going psychologically and made sure I kept working hard."
He added: "If you come down and play every week you can go into a lull and start to coast through games but, now I have seen the manager can be ruthless and leave me out, it's made me more determined to get into the team and show people I should be playing."
Heckingbottom has said Mallan could add something new to the team with his set piece expertise and long-range shooting, but the Scotland under 21s player has had to work on the tactical and physical elements of his central midfield play. Mallan said: "I know that's something I have had to work on in my career. When you come down from Scotland to England you have to work on that a lot more and I've improved a lot. I've shown it for the under 23s and now it's time to start showing it for the first team."
Many Barnsley fans have been calling for Mallan to play during the current five-game losing run. He said: "If you have not been playing, it's a great feeling to know the fans still think of you. It's a pick-me-up and I can't thank the fans enough. I just hope I don't let them down if and when I get my chance."
