🔗 Share this article

When Alex Scott made his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his coach back then assured, “we haven’t seen the best from this boy.”

That statement turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.

Today aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden call-up to the full England squad.

His rise from non-league prodigy to possible international star is a proper blast from the past, a story seldom told in the modern game.

What’s next? The World Cup?

“Back then, there was no chance of making it as a professional football player, never mind playing in the Premier League and playing for England as well,” the player said previously.

“It’s been a incredible five or six years of my life, and circumstances have changed completely for me and my family.”

So in what way did Alex Scott, referred to affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, end up here?

Learning in non-league

His path in football has been far from a conventional one.

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ academy setup from the age of eight, leaving school early every Friday to fly from his home on Guernsey to the mainland so he could train and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Before his 13th birthday, though, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a time, but, as he later admitted, his heart was not in it.

Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and turn out for his hometown club.

“I wasn’t playing very well and flying over every week was becoming overwhelming,” he explained.

“All I desired to chill at home with my mates at weekends because I missed almost several years of doing that. Getting that slice of childhood again was something I really required.

“To gain a bit of confidence by returning and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps one of the most important things that got me where I am today.”

At the age of 16, Scott became the most youthful appearance-maker in the club’s records when he came on as a 57th-minute substitute in their Isthmian League match at the opposition.

“I’ve been having sleepless nights because I was figuring out how I could include him in the side because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss Tony Vance commented at the time.

“Everyone’s now seen that – his possession of the ball is outstanding, the manner he runs with the ball, he’s a class act.”

Returning to the professional game

Championship side the Robins – owned by Guernsey resident Steve Lansdown – had been monitoring Scott’s early progress after an impressive start in men’s football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.

“The whole experience was chaos,” recalled Scott. “The first day I joined the under-18s, the next day I was with the first team, which was a total surprise.

“Midweek I played for Guernsey FC in London, returned home and by Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a hat-trick. It was almost a done deal for me to sign a deal.”

Within 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was making his senior debut against the Hatters.

Scott went on to make 83 league appearances for the Robins while in his teens, often being deployed as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a attacking midfielder – demonstrating his adaptability and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.

With his skill to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the moniker ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a nod to City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.

At the end of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s young player of the season award, was chosen in the league’s team of the year and was voted the club’s top player and top youngster.

“Without question, I think he will represent England and I’m sure he will progress to the top of the game,” Nigel Pearson, Scott’s boss at the club, remarked last year.

Less than 90 days later, he joined the Cherries for a understood transfer fee of 25 million pounds.

Getting his major transfer

Scott experienced a challenging debut campaign with the club, waiting until October to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem 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 ruled him out for nearly several months.

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

“That felt like yet another obstacle and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”

But he was then called up by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and succeeded in regain fitness in time.

He went on to start five of the England U21s’ six games as they claimed victory in the competition in Slovakia, developing a formidable understanding in the middle with his teammate, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under Thomas Tuchel.

And he has started the current campaign equally as impressively for his club, featuring in all matches to help them to fifth in the standings.

“Representing the national team would be among the most special occasions of my career,” the player said recently.

“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a player, maintain my love for the game, improving day on day, and with luck I impress the England manager and earn an opportunity.”