As a young player who has broken into his first-team and immediately established himself with eye-catching performances, Motherwell’s Chris Cadden should be on cloud nine.

Unfortunately for the midfielder, his impressive breakthrough has coincided with a run of games in which the Steelmen have suffered last-gasp heartache, with three points squandered and a Scottish Cup exit coming in the dying stages of the last three matches.

Hence the reason why the 19-year-old cut a dejected figure as he clutched his man-of-the-match award in the wake of Motherwell’s latest sickener against Inverness on Saturday.

The only solace that Cadden and his teammates are holding onto is a steadfast certainty that if they continue to perform in a similar vein, that sooner or later their luck will turn.

The youngster said: “It’s always nice to get man of the match but I would have preferred to have stinker and the boys got through. It’s no consolation.

“I think we deserved to get through if I’m being honest.

“I thought once we scored there was only going to be one team that went on to win it, but these things happen in football and we’ve just got to pick ourselves up again.

“We’ve got a massive game on Saturday against Kilmarnock, so we’ve got to dust ourselves down, work hard and try to get the win.

“We’re playing well so it’s not as if we’re coming in after the game and thinking we’ve had a stinker. With the exception of the game against Hearts we’ve been doing ok.

“We deserved to win up in Dundee and a bad refereeing decision has cost us there, I think we deserved at least a point at Thistle and I think we deserved at least a replay against Inverness. We’re just not getting the rub of the green at the moment, but once these things start to go our way I’m sure we’ll start climbing the table.

“The performances are there and that’s the positive thing, it’s not as if we’re going out and getting beat 3 or 4 nil every week.

“They’re close games and we’re playing well, we just can’t get the points on the board. But once we start maybe getting that bit of luck then I think come the end of the season we won’t be anywhere near relegation.

“We’ll be absolutely fine, I’ve no doubt about that.”

There would be no better time than for Motherwell to rediscover the winning habit than in the next two matches.

First, they take on second-bottom Kilmarnock at Fir Park on Saturday before travelling to take on last-placed Dundee United next midweek.

Cadden is fully aware of how the results of these games could massively shape Motherwell’s season given the congested nature of the table, and he hopes that he can maintain his place in the side long enough to help them out of their current predicament.

“If we win on Saturday then we’ll have taken ourselves away from Kilmarnock and we’ve got Dundee United after that, and all we’re thinking about is winning these two matches,” he said.

“If we can do that then we’ll have climbed right up the table and we’ll be absolutely fine.

“It’s so tight. If we don’t lose these wee last minute goals over the last few games we would have been nearer the top six than the bottom, so that’s why we’ve got to keep fighting for every point and get on with it.

“It’s been brilliant to be in the team and I’ve been enjoying every minute. It would be nice to get a win, but to be out playing in front of such a great crowd on a Saturday is amazing.

“The under-20’s is nothing compared to the first-team, because you’re fighting for every ball and hopefully I can keep my place in the team.

“I’ve had four games in a row and managed to get a goal, but I know myself that if my performances aren’t up to standard then I’ll lose my place."