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When the young midfielder stepped onto the pitch for his local team debut versus Phoenix Sports before just 55 fans in 2019, his manager back then assured, “there’s more to come from this boy.”

That statement proved to be something of an understatement.

Now aged 22 and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has earned his maiden summons to the senior England squad.

His ascent from eighth-tier talent to possible England player is a true throwback, a journey rarely told in the modern game.

Next stop? The World Cup?

“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a professional football player, let alone playing in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” Scott stated in a recent interview.

“It’s been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and things have transformed completely for me and my loved ones.”

So in what way did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Grealish from Guernsey’, find himself at this level?

Learning in non-league

His path in football has not been a typical one.

He spent four and a half years in the Saints’ youth system from the age of eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his island home on the Channel Island to the mainland so he could attend training and feature for the Saints’ youth teams.

Before he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an option and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.

Instead, he opted to stay on Guernsey and play for his local team.

“I wasn’t playing very well and traveling every week was starting to feel a bit too much,” he recalled.

“I just wanted to relax at home with my mates at weekends because I had missed nearly four and a half years of that experience. To have that little bit of childhood back was something I really needed.

“Building a bit of self-belief by coming back and playing island football was massive for me. That proved to be perhaps the most crucial things that led me where I am today.”

At the age of 16, the teenager became the youngest player in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a second-half substitute in their league fixture at the opposition.

“I had 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 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

Championship side the Robins – chaired by Guernsey resident their owner – had been monitoring his early progress after an promising start in adult football and gave him a trial in late 2019.

“It was hectic,” said the player. “Day one I trained with the youth team, the next day I trained with the senior squad, which was a total shock.

“Midweek I featured for his local side in the capital, travelled back and on the Friday, I took the field for Bristol City Under-18s and netted a hat-trick. From that point a done deal for me to put pen to paper on a contract.”

In just 18 months, still some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut versus the Hatters.

Scott went on to make eighty-three league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, often being used as a wing-back – and occasionally further forward as a number 10 – demonstrating his versatility and versatility. Despite his youth and playing out of position he was their best player.

Thanks to his ability to carry the ball forward, and with his socks down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘the Guernsey Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and England playmaker Jack Grealish.

By the conclusion of the 2022-23 season he won the second tier’s best young player honour, was chosen in the division’s best XI and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.

“Without question, I think he will represent his country and I think he will progress to the pinnacle of the sport,” his former manager, the player’s manager at Ashton Gate, stated last year.

Less than three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported fee of £25m.

Securing his major transfer

Scott endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until the autumn to earn his Premier League debut after a knee problem in the summer, and then being inconsistent of the team.

His second campaign was equally disrupted, this time by a knee operation which ruled him out for almost four months.

“There was a decent run at the close of the previous campaign, which was good to have, then I fractured my jaw,” explained Scott.

“It was almost another setback and it was turning out to be quite a terrible year for the first half.”

But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit in time.

He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in the host nation, developing a strong understanding in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who in turn has gone on to impress for the first team under Thomas Tuchel.

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

“Representing the England senior team would be among the most special occasions of my life,” the player said earlier this season.

“It’s down to me, I’ve got to continue developing as a player, keep enjoying football, improving day on day, and with luck I catch the eye of the national coach and get my chance.”