It has been a season of ups and downs for Dean Cornelius, but he is loving life firmly in the Motherwell spotlight.
In his fourth season as a professional at his boyhood club, the midfielder has started all but one of the games he has been available for selection for under new boss Stuart Kettlewell, who has tasked the 22-year-old with being the legs in his midfield system.
Spots on the bench were not what Cornelius was after as he was desperate to be making his impact from the off, but a sit down with the boss helped fill him with confidence that he could bring his combative strengths to the fore on a regular basis.
And now he is getting his chances, he is keen to take them and cement his place as a Motherwell regular, with the squad keen to not let up and let good progress under new management fade away in 2022/23’s dying embers.
“Football at the moment is something I have really been enjoying since the new manager came in,” explained Cornelius. “He has put his faith in me and played me a lot. All I want to be doing is playing games and that is what has been happening.
“So it is brilliant. He pulled me in when he first came in and spoke to me one on one and highlighted the importance of the role I do. He understands that sometimes it can be overlooked as you need to do the grafting bit of the game and you need to be a team player.
“I feel like the role he has given me suits me and you can see I am playing with more confidence and enjoying my football because of it. I didn’t play as much as I would have liked at the start of the season but it is just part of the process and learning curve.
“As a young boy you can’t beat yourself up as it is not going to get you anywhere is it? All you can do is keep working away and working your way into the team, which once you get that, it is about doing your best.”
The one match the battler wasn’t involved in was the most recent clash away at Celtic, where Ketllewell’s men put in an enormous effort to become the first side to take points off Ange Postecoglou’s side in Glasgow’s east end this term courtesy of a 1-1 draw.
Such a result would have been laughed off as reality by sceptics in the winter months the club lurked around the Premiership’s lower reaches. But Cornelius reckons it points to the progression the team has made to lift dropzone fears.
And the afternoon came with an added twist for the number 18. He was in amongst the punters again as he sat the match out with injury, and it provided him a personal moment to remember and a reminder of how long his journey has been since his days as a diehard.
“The boys put in some shift at Celtic,” the 22-year-old beamed.
“I wasn’t playing but I was at it, and it shows how much we have come on as a team together and as a unit. The team as both a starting XI and the boys on the bench, we are all together now and you can really see everyone has bought into what the manager has said and we are starting to get the results that we want.
“I was stuck behind the pillar in the away end so you miss half the game, but it is better than nothing. Being in with the fans again is a reminder of how far you have come so it is nice.
“Obviously I was one of them, in the crowd and going to all the Motherwell games home and away. To be back there makes you appreciate how far you have come on. It’s a proud feeling.
“When you are younger and going to the games you obviously don’t know all the boys, whereas now I regard all my team-mates as my mates on and off the field so when they score, it is a strange feeling as you are with them all the time. But it was good.”
While perhaps after more starts in the first half of this campaign, Cornelius is left in no doubt that this has been his biggest season to date at Fir Park. There have been 30 run outs made overall with five more still to potentially be made.
That’s a big increase on the 17 last term and a solitary 10 minutes in a league clash with Dundee United in the 2020/21 campaign. It’s been a slow-burner journey since his debut on the final day of the 2018/19 season against Livingston but he will likely crash through 50 appearances in claret and amber by the time this campaign is done.
And he believes it has equipped him well for all the challenges and highs football will bring him throughout the rest of his career.
“This has been a more successful season for me at Motherwell as I feel it has been one where I have fully broken through and played a lot more games compared to any other year,” he commented.
“I feel it has really developed me as a player, and I feel a lot more composed and mature.
“The main thing for me is confidence. With a manager that has confidence in you, it really reflects onto the pitch and I feel like it has helped me a lot in my development.
“I think the boys need the credit for the position we are in now. We did get in a mess but we took ownership of that and we have managed to turn things around. We are starting to see a lot more progress.
“With it being a young squad, every game is a learning curve for us and I think everybody would agree with that, not just me being young as I am. Whether it is one of the older pros or one of us, I think everyone would agree.
“We are in it together so hopefully the experiences we have had this season are used going into next season and you can only get better from there.”
For the first time in Cornelius’ career too, there has been lingering transfer chat over what comes next for him. His contract at Fir Park is currently due to expire at the end of the season and while it is something new, it’s not something the Lanarkshire lad is too fussed about.
With plenty of work ahead in the remainder of the Premiership term, it’s still a case of working hard and gaining results.
“It is something I am not used to but the main thing for me and my family who I have spoken to about it, is that you need to keep both feet on the ground, “ said Cornelius.
“You need to block it out as at the end of the day, Motherwell is my club at the moment.
“All I want to do is give it my 100% wherever I am. I’m currently at Motherwell and I want to focus on the present. I don’t want to look ahead as I don’t want it impacting my performances. We have five massive games so I want to win them.
“I feel the big difference is I have matured on the pitch and am playing with a lot more confidence. As a young boy breaking through, it is hard mentally to perform week in and week out and when you do get thrown in, it’s completely different, a man’s game.
“It is a lot more physical and when you are coming through as a youth, it is not quite the same as when you are actually in a competitive league where boys have got their livelihoods on the line and you want to win three points.”
It’s not just a personal mantra of keep pushing on that Cornelius has. With safety almost secured, he insists that heading into the final five post-split matches there is still much to be won and lost.
“There’s still enough for us to play for,” he added. “Mathematically we are not safe yet so we can’t take our foot off the gas as we want to have a strong finish to the season and if you do finish strong, you can take that confidence into the next season.
“You can’t get too comfortable and you still want to win every game you can. No footballer you ever speak to will say they will go into a game and you are not bothered about winning. Every game you are wanting to win those three points.
“Whether your motivation is money towards end of season bonuses, pride, wanting to get a move, everybody has their own motivations and everyone is trying hard to get three points. It’s a lot more intense but I relish it.”
