Back when the young midfielder made his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time predicted, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This statement proved to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now aged 22 and an established top-flight player with Bournemouth, the midfielder has just received his first summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential international star is a true throwback, a journey seldom told in the modern game.
Next stop? A major tournament?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of becoming a pro footballer, never mind playing in the top division and representing England too,” Scott stated previously.
“It’s been a crazy half-dozen years of my life, and things have changed drastically for myself and my loved ones.”
So in what way did Scott, referred to fondly as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
His path in football has not been a typical one.
He was part of over four years in the Saints’ youth system starting at eight, leaving school early every Friday to travel by air from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and play for the Saints’ youth teams.
Prior to he turned 13, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries were willing to offer Scott an opportunity and he remained with them for a time, but, by the player’s own admission, his heart was not in it.
Instead, he chose to remain on Guernsey and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling weekly was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.
“I just wanted to relax at my home with my mates at the weekend because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I definitely required.
“To gain some confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. It was probably one of the most important factors that got me to this point.”
When he was just 16, the teenager made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian 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 he’s that good,” manager Tony Vance stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his retention of the ball is exceptional, the way 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 Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in men’s football and gave him a trial in late 2019.
“The whole experience was chaos,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.
“Midweek I played for his local side in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for the youth team and scored a three goals. From that point a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within 18 months, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his first-team debut versus Luton.
He went on to make eighty-three league outings for the club while in his teens, often being used as a wing-back – and sometimes further forward 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 drive the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he picked up the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to City and England attacking midfielder Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he won the second tier’s young player of the season honour, was selected in the league’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he will represent his country and I’m sure he’ll go on to the top of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, stated last year.
Within 90 days after, he joined Bournemouth for a reported fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the club, having to wait until October to earn his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then being inconsistent of the team.
His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for nearly four months.
“I had a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“It was almost another setback and the year was turning out to be quite a terrible 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 started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in the middle with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team with Thomas Tuchel.
And he has begun this season equally as strongly for his club, featuring in all matches to guide them to the top five in the standings.
“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” Scott stated recently.
“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, maintain my love for football, getting better day on day, and hopefully I impress the England manager and get my chance.”
