When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
That statement proved to be something of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his first call-up to the senior England team.
His rise from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a true blast from the past, a journey rarely told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have changed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
But how did Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has not been a typical one.
He spent over four years in Southampton’s academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Before his 13th birthday, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.
Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and play for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was a thing I really required.
“Building some self-belief by returning and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he was introduced as a second-half replacement in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.
“I had trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance commented back then.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his development after an impressive beginning in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the second day I was with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and by Friday, I took the field for the youth team and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against Luton.
He made eighty-three league appearances for the club while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wide defender – and occasionally in attack as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and not in his natural role he was their best player.
With his skill to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was selected in the division’s team of the year and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s boss at the club, stated previously.
Within 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood fee of 25 million pounds.
Securing his big move
The midfielder endured a difficult first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“There was quite a good run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained he.
“That felt like almost another setback and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest moments of my career,” the player stated earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying football, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
