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For any young footballer looking to make it in the professional ranks, sacrifices have to be made.
For Alex Scott, attempting to break into the game as a young player in Guernsey, it meant juggling school, friendships and making regular flights to England in pursuit of his dream career.
After being handed early opportunities to develop at Southampton and Bournemouth, the demands of travelling back and forth from the Channel Islands would eventually take their toll, with the midfielder stepping away from the grind after being released by Saints, as he looked to enjoy his football and life with his friends again.
Scott on the challenges of playing in Guernsey
This saw Scott turn out for Guernsey FC, who were part of the English football period, which again meant regular trips across the Channel. But despite these demands, Scott was proud to represent his birthplace.
“Immensely,” he tells FourFourTwo. “It’s where I grew up and was all I’d ever known – I lived there until I was 16 and there are so many people back home who always support me. All my family are still there – I’m proud to come from Guernsey and make it in the Premier League.”
But Scott admits that during his younger days, the challenge of travelling to train at Southampton and then Bournemouth was significant.
“It was enjoyable but tough, especially on my parents,” he continues. “Flying over every single weekend was financially difficult, and it got to a point where I wasn’t seeing my friends and didn’t really have a life at home. It was almost just school, fly over, play football and fly back.
“When I was released from Southampton, I lost a bit of interest in football and flying over, so it was probably the best decision I made to stop, and to just enjoy football and growing up with my friends.”
As a Channel Island club in the English pyramid, Guernsey has an unusual place in the game, meaning the team had to travel to the mainland for every away game, something that took some getting used to for Scott.
“For maybe the first eight or nine games, Guernsey’s stand or the track was being redone, so all of the games were away,” He recalls.
“Every weekend we were flying to an away game, but it was an experience I enjoyed, travelling with these older lads as a 16-year-old. They were teaching you all sorts of stuff – probably stuff you shouldn’t be taught at that age!” But, ultimately, this travel would go on to benefit Scott.
“It was huge – to go over and play, you never knew who was watching. If I was just playing back home in Guernsey, it’s so tough to get over to the mainland and get an opportunity. Playing on the mainland, there are more eyes on you, even in those leagues.”
Scott was speaking at PUMA’s store on Oxford Street in London, the brand’s first European flagship store.
