Back when the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports in front of just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That prediction turned out to be a bit of an understatement.
Now 22 years old and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has earned his first summons to the full Three Lions squad.
His ascent from eighth-tier talent to potential England player is a true throwback, a story seldom told in the modern game.
What’s next? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, let alone featuring in the top division and playing for England as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed completely for myself and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was becoming a bit too much,” he explained.
“All I desired to relax at my home with my friends at weekends because I had missed nearly several years of that experience. Getting that slice of youth back was a thing I really required.
“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and taking part in local football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
At the age of 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss the coach commented at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking Scott’s early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“It was chaos,” recalled Scott. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a complete shock.
“On the Wednesday I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and by Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He made 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.
Thanks to his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the division’s team of the year and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s manager at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of 25 million pounds.
Getting his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee problem in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His following season was just as affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness for the tournament.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a strong partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign just as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to the top five in the standings.
“To play for the national team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” Scott stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the England manager and get my chance.”
