When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports in front of a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Today aged 22 and an established top-flight player with the Cherries, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the full England squad.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and playing for 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 transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Scott, known fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, end up at this level?
Developing in the lower tiers
Scott’s path in football has not been a conventional one.
He spent over four years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of 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.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they released him. Bournemouth gave him an opportunity and he remained with them for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to stay on the island and play for his local team.
“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling weekly was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to chill at home with my friends at weekends because I missed nearly several years of that experience. To have that little bit of youth again was a thing I really required.
“To gain some self-belief by coming back and playing local football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial factors that got me where I am today.”
When he was just 16, the teenager became 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 trouble sleeping because I was trying to work out how I could include him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance stated back then.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the pro ranks
Championship side Bristol City – owned by islander Steve Lansdown – had been tracking his development after an promising start in adult football and gave him a try-out in December 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said the player. “The first day I trained with the under-18s, the second day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I featured for Guernsey FC in the capital, returned home and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to sign a deal.”
In just 18 months, still well before his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus the Hatters.
He went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the club while in his teens, frequently being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – such was his adaptability and versatility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was the standout performer.
With 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 nod to City and England playmaker Grealish.
By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the league’s best XI and was voted Bristol City’s top player and top youngster.
“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at Ashton Gate, stated previously.
Less than 90 days later, he signed for Bournemouth for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
Scott endured a difficult first season with the club, having to wait until the autumn to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself in and out of the starting XI.
His second campaign was just as disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost several months.
“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was nice to have, then I broke my jaw,” explained Scott.
“That felt like almost another obstacle and the year was turning out to be a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the U21 Euros – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.
He started five of the Young Lions’ six games as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable understanding in midfield with his teammate, who himself has excelled for the first team with the national coach.
And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for Bournemouth, playing in every game to guide them to the top five in the table.
“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special moments of my career,” Scott said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I must keep progressing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving every day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
