When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this youngster.”
That statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the full Three Lions team.
His rise from eighth-tier talent to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a journey rarely seen in the modern era.
What’s next? A major tournament?
“Back then, there was no chance of becoming a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and representing England too,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed completely for myself and my family.”
But how did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has been far from a typical one.
He was part of four and a half years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school every Friday to travel by air from his home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. Bournemouth gave Scott an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he opted to remain on the island and play for his hometown club.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was starting to feel overwhelming,” he explained.
“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed almost four and a half years of doing that. Getting that little bit of youth back was something I really required.
“To gain a bit of self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he came on as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.
“Everyone’s now seen that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he carries the ball, he’s pure quality.”
Making a comeback to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – chaired by islander Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s development after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in December 2019.
“It was hectic,” recalled the player. “Day one I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for his local side in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was making his first-team debut against the Hatters.
He made eighty-three league outings for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his versatility and flexibility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With his ability to drive the ball forward, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he picked up the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and England attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he claimed the EFL Championship’s best young player honour, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I believe he’ll play for his country and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated last year.
Within 90 days later, he joined Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Getting his big move
The midfielder experienced a challenging first season with the club, waiting until the autumn to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in the summer, and then finding himself in and out of the team.
His following season was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for nearly several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.
“It was almost another setback and it was shaping up as quite a terrible year for the first half.”
But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to regain fitness in time.
He went on to start five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the competition in the host nation, developing a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has excelled for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has begun this season just as strongly for Bournemouth, featuring in every game to help them to fifth in the table.
“To play for the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” the player stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying the game, getting better day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”
