Results may have been mixed so far this season for the Fir Parkers, but one thing has remained constant throughout.
Richard Tait has quickly established himself as a trusty, consistent performer in Mark McGhee’s side – slotting in to the back four seamlessly alongside fellow new signing Ben Heneghan and veteran defenders Stephen McManus and Stevie Hammell.
Joining Motherwell in the summer from Grimsby Town, the defender admits he is “loving” his new club.
At 26 years of age, Tait boasts a mature attitude beyond his years and contributes going forward as well as protecting his own goal.
His assists have been an example of this, with the full-back most recently turning provider for Scott McDonald’s equalising goal against Partick Thistle.
[pullquote]I love being around the club, all the boys are great and I can’t complain at all – it’s the best move I could’ve made.[/pullquote]
Tait admitted: “We worked on those crosses to the back post in training on the lead up to the game, cutting back on to my weaker foot and whipping it in and my cross came off and led to the goal so I was happy with that.”
With his attitude and work-rate a hit among his teammates, Tait has been a great addition to Mark McGhee’s squad.
The defender admitted he has learnt a great deal from his those around him ay Motherwell and admires the attitude of the team.
“We’ve got so many lads in the team who are natural winners,” Tait said: “so when the weeks come that we don’t quite hit our heights there’s players in the team who can step up and we can still come away with a point or even three on tough match days.”
Winning is something naturally engrained in Richard Tait’s game and approach, not solely down to his ability, but also because of his close bond with the club already.
He said: “I’m absolutely loving it here at Motherwell. I love being around the club, all the boys are great and I can’t complain at all – it’s the best move I could’ve made and I’m really pleased with how it’s working out at the minute.
“I want to go from strength to strength football wise and play my best for Motherwell, that’s my aim.”
With four assists to his name in all competitions this season already, Tait wants to keep that side of his game developing.
[pullquote]So far this season we’ve been trying to find our feet a little but one of the encouraging things is that we’re still getting results and we’re sitting in the top half despite not hitting our consistent best every week.[/pullquote]
He said: “It’s an important part of my game and I have said it since I joined that I want to add more assists to my game and get forward a bit more, but first and foremost my job is to keep a clean sheet and if we can do that then happy days and if I can contribute in any way going forward then that’s even better.”
With two wins, three draws and three losses so far this season, the Steelmen have had a mixed start in terms of results, but find themselves sitting sixth in the league table, something Tait finds reassuring.
He said: “So far this season we’ve been trying to find our feet a little but one of the encouraging things is that we’re still getting results and we’re sitting in the top half despite not hitting our consistent best every week.
“We know that the table is really tight at the moment so points are hugely important at this stage.”
He added: “We’ve done well in some games then poorer in others and the important thing is how we bounce back from results like Friday night.”
There’s a lot to play for as the Ladbrokes Premiership starts to take shape, and for ‘Well defender Richard Tait, he will be hoping to continue his consistent performances after the international break ahead of a big clash with Celtic.