Ruari Paton cherishing each moment at Dundee United despite lack of minutes

Ruari Paton is cherishing every moment of his loan stint at Dundee United, even though it has not given him the game time and goals he would have liked so far.

The 24-year-old forward has made just four starts and is yet to score since joining the Tannadice club on a temporary deal from Port Vale in January.

Paton is able to place his current situation into a positive context, however, when he recalls that he dropped into the non-league ranks after being released by Hibernian as a teenager and was playing in the Scottish Championship with Queen’s Park last season.

“You want to play every minute, but sometimes that’s not how it works,” said the striker. “I think especially for me, the past year, obviously I’ve went from there, I’ve went up levels through the lower leagues and then I’ve taken a jump again and then a jump here.

“You have to understand you’re at a different level. It’s not a disrespect to the levels I’ve been at, it’s just that you are at a different level. I think maybe that time of getting used to it has really done me well.”

Paton is heartened by the fact he has not felt out of his depth after taking what he feels has been “an astronomical jump” to get to the Scottish Premiership, where he could feature against champions-in-waiting Celtic on Saturday.

“I was maybe thinking, I hope I don’t get in and I’m like, ‘Jesus Christ, I’m absolutely rubbish’, but I’ve found it OK,” he said. “I just think with a bit more time, I’d be really able to show my quality.

“That’s not arrogant, I’m not delusional in any way, I know I can do the business here. I think that adjustment period has been good for me, but I have enjoyed it.

“Some of the dreams I had when I was a kid, of playing at this level, have come true for me.

“I’ve been in a spot where playing here now is like an absolute astronomical leap from where I was in terms of when I was released as a 19-year-old kid and had no options.

“To be able to sit here now, I’m talking to you, all these cameras in front of me, I was nowhere near being anywhere near this level.

“I’ve actually really, really enjoyed it. I think it’s a great place, there’s great people. I’ve enjoyed every day of training. Obviously, I would have liked to have scored early on.

“In terms of how I feel it’s gone, I try not too much to look into that. I just try to enjoy every day, because things can be over quickly.

“Hopefully, the next couple of weeks when I’m up here now, it would be great to play some games, get a couple of goals and then get us into a good European spot.

“I think that would be the icing on the cake for me in terms of really enjoying a couple of months of football.”