When the young midfielder made his Guernsey debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be something of an understatement.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden call-up to the senior England squad.
His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the top division and playing for England too,” the player stated in a recent interview.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
But in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?
Learning in non-league
His path in football has been far from a typical one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they released him. Bournemouth were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.
Instead, he chose to remain on the island and turn out for his hometown club.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was becoming a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth back was something I definitely required.
“Building a bit of confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that led me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, Scott made history as the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at the opposition.
“I had sleepless nights because I was trying to work out how I could get him in the team because he’s that good,” manager the coach stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Championship side Bristol City – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” recalled Scott. “The first day I trained with the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being deployed as a wide defender – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.
Thanks to his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a nod to City and England playmaker Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was named Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I believe he’ll play for his country and I think he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s manager at the club, remarked last year.
Less than 90 days after, he signed for Bournemouth for a understood transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his major transfer
The midfielder experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then being in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a surgery which sidelined him for almost four months.
“There was a decent run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” said Scott.
“That felt like yet another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then called up by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit for the tournament.
He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with his teammate, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun the current campaign just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player stated recently.
“The responsibility is mine, I must continue developing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better day on day, and hopefully I catch the eye of the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
