🔗 Share this article

When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”

This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.

Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the senior Three Lions squad.

His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a true throwback, a journey rarely told in the modern era.

What’s next? A major tournament?

“Back then, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott stated in a recent interview.

“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”

But how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up here?

Developing in the lower tiers

His football journey has not been a typical one.

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.

Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave him an option and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his mind was not in it.

Rather, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.

“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he explained.

“I just wanted to chill at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly several years of doing that. To have that slice of youth again was something I really required.

“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and taking part in local football was huge for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important factors that led me where I am today.”

When he was just 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a 57th-minute replacement in their Isthmian League match at Phoenix Sports.

“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the side because he’s that good,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.

“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side the Robins – owned by islander their owner – had been tracking Scott’s development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a try-out in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said Scott. “Day one I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.

“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”

Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut against the Hatters.

He went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes in attack as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Despite his youth and not in his natural role he was their best player.

Thanks to his ability to carry the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team playmaker Jack Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s player and young player of the Year.

“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, the player’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Within three months later, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.

Securing his big move

The midfielder endured a challenging debut campaign with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.

His second campaign was just as affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.

“There was a decent run at the end of last season, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.

“It was almost another setback and it was turning out to be a pretty bad start for the first five months.”

But he was then selected by the national team for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness for the tournament.

He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side with the national coach.

And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, playing in every game to guide them to fifth in the table.

“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my life,” the player said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a footballer, keep enjoying the game, getting better every day, and with luck I impress the England manager and get my chance.”