Tam Courts has challenged in-form Dundee United defender Ross Graham to become a Tannadice centurion.
The 21-year-old was shortlisted for the Scottish Football Writers’ Association (SFWA) Young Player of the Year award on Tuesday morning.
Graham will battle it out with Nathan Patterson, Stephen Welsh, Josh Doig and Calvin Ramsey for the prize.
Graham’s nomination underlines the remarkable progress he has made since returning from an unsuccessful loan spell at Dunfermline in January.
Since then, the boyhood Arab has made 14 appearances, scored two goals and found the net on his Scotland under-21 debut against Kazakhstan in March.
A special moment for Ross Graham, bagging his first goal for the Terrors! 🍊#cinchPrem | @dundeeunitedfc pic.twitter.com/ARr69vv4ZW
— SPFL (@spfl) February 21, 2022
“The nomination a fantastic achievement for Ross,” lauded Courts.
“He came back here [from Dunfermline] and was probably a little bit unsure about where his future lay, in the short-term.
“So, to then watch his trajectory, performances and those big moments has been terrific. There have been so many positives over the last few months for Ross.
“He is now in a position where he is part of a playing squad that can get us into Europe.”
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Graham’s emergence comes mere months after Kerr Smith, another precocious centre-back, joined Aston Villa for a few which could rise to £2 million.
Indeed, United have made no secret of their desire to create a conveyor belt of young talent.
While not ignorant of the realities of modern football, Courts is in no rush to see Graham go anywhere, insisting the sky is the limit for his development at Tannadice.
“We were always clear on where Ross’ trajectory was heading,” continued Courts.
“He was probably disappointed to be going out on loan, particularly when he was seeing younger centre-backs getting opportunities.
“But we were always of the mind that he was a centre-half we saw playing 100 to 150 games for United. That will hopefully ring true.
“We understand that the market will naturally be looking at any player who is 6ft3ins, balanced with his left-foot and has a strong mentality — but we believe there is a lot of development still to come with Ross.
“The next four games will give him even more of a platform to show a different side of his character, mentality and quality.
“At this stage of the season, when there is a little more pressure to deliver, it will be another question for Ross — as well as all of our players and the coaching staff — to answer. It’s a challenge to relish.”
