SPFL Talents to Watch in 21/22 (Part Two)


Welcome to part two of SPFL Talents to Watch in 21/22. Today, I’ll be looking at one player from each of Livingston, Motherwell, Rangers, Ross County, St. Johnstone and St. Mirren who could look to make an impression in the forthcoming campaign. 


Livingston - Adam Lewis 

Julien Serrano was Livingston’s main left back last season, making 24 appearances in the SPFL. It was outwith the Lions financial capabilities to sign the Monaco youngster permanently so they have turned to the loan market to plug the gap the Frenchman left. Adam Lewis looks like he will be the man to do so after he joined from Liverpool on a season long loan. This is his third temporary move away from the Premier League side. Lewis had spells at both Plymouth Argyle and Amiens last season where he racked up 30 appearances across English League One, the FA Cup and the French second division, Ligue 2. In those 30 games last season, Lewis scored scored one goal and registered two assists. The defender excels when deployed at left wing back in a back five. Therefore, it is clear to see why David Martindale has acquired the services of Lewis as the Livi boss regularly utilities a five at the back system. The 21 year old has played in all four of Livingston’s Premier Sports Cup group games so far, helping them to three victories, albeit one on penalties. Lewis also featured in a friendly for Livingston against Arbroath; the Englishman got an assist when he played through Allan Forrest for Livi’s fourth. Lewis looks like he will be the first choice left back at the Tony Macaroni Arena this season. It will be intriguing to see if he can take his chance and make a name for himself in Scotland. 


Motherwell - Connor Shields

Connor Shields is somewhat of a journeyman already. He’s played for five clubs before joining Motherwell this summer. Shields may have Tony Watt and Kevin van Veen to compete with at striker for the steel men this season however the 23 year old scored more goals than both of the afore mentioned players put together in 20/21. Shields joined Motherwell on a free transfer from Queen of the South and the Lanarkshire club’s acquisition could turn out to be one of the wisest of the window. Shields made 28 appearances across all competitions in the 20/21 season, scoring 11 goals and registering 2 assists as he helped his side to a 6th place finish in the Championship. The Scot signed a three year deal at Fir Park after spending only 12 months with Queen of the South. The fact he only spent a year at the Doonhamers is a credit to his success. Shields would’ve been hoping to impress ‘Well boss Graham Alexander in pre season and the Premier Sports Cup however injury has prevented him from doing so. It wouldn’t be astounding to see Connor Shields repeat his form of last season in the Premiership in 21/22. 


Rangers - Nathan Patterson 

There is no debate about who the young player to watch for Rangers is this season. Nathan Patterson burst on to the scene in the last campaign as the Gers won their first league title in ten years. He may have only made 11 appearances across all competitions last season however Patterson’s exploits certainly caught the eye of many, including Scotland boss Steve Clarke who gave him his first call up to the national team ahead of Euro 2020. Patterson went on to play twice for Scotland in the summer, making his debut in a warm up game against Luxembourg. His second cap for his country came against Croatia in Scotland’s final Euro 2020 group game. Patterson combines pace and exuberance going forward with physicality and solidity defensively. It remains to be seen whether the Scot will get consistent game time in 21/22 with club captain James Tavernier ahead of him in the pecking order. Alternatively, Steven Gerrard could switch to a back three or five and attempt to fit both Patterson and Tavernier into the same lineup. One thing is for sure though, if Patterson gets a chance, he will surely grasp it just as he did in the 20/21 season. 


Ross County - Alex Robertson 

Alex Robertson is the second player to feature in this article who is a loanee. Robertson joined Ross County on loan from Premier League champions Manchester City around two weeks ago and has went on to make two appearances for the Staggies so far this season. They both came in the Premier Sports Cup against Brora Rangers and Montrose respectively. Against Brora, the 18 year old came on for the last 25 minutes as he helped his team see out a 1-0 victory. The Englishman started versus Montrose and was subbed off at half time when Ross County were already 2-0 up. Robertson described himself as a box to box midfielder who likes to get forward and score goals in an interview with Sky Sports. This is evident because across the 20/21 season, Robertson made a total of 22 appearances in the Premier League 2 (the youth version of the Premier League) and the under 18 Premier League; he scored 10 and got 3 assists. New Ross County manager Malky Mackay has been keen to work with Robertson in the past. When Mackay was Scotland’s academy manager, he attempted to get Robertson to switch allegiances from England to Scotland however the then 14 year old was reluctant to do so. In present day, Malky Mackay has finally got his chance to collaborate with Robertson so it let’s see if the former Watford, Wigan and Cardiff manager can support Robertson in his growth and development in the Highlands. 


St. Johnstone - Cammy Ballantyne

I didn’t want to make too many players in this article loanees and that is the reason I have picked Cammy Ballantyne for St. Johnstone over the likes of Reece Devine and Hayden Muller. Due to the Saints having realistic prospects of getting into Europe this season, their squad depth will really be put to the test. Liam Craig, Murray Davidson, Craig Bryson and Craig Conway are all 33 years of age or older. Callum Davidson may look to younger players to provide some vibrancy and energy in the engine room and Ballantyne could certainly do so. A partnership between the highly rated and sought after Ali McCann and Ballantyne could be an extremely invigorating one. The 21 year old has spent the past two years on loan at Montrose, getting 4 goals and 4 assists in 53 appearances in all competitions as he gained some much needed experience. Apart from Rangers, St. Johnstone are the only team in the Scottish Premiership to have not played a competitive game yet. Therefore, it has been hard to gauge who will be the real first team players or starters in the new season. The Perth side have played three friendlies so far against Preston North End, Arbroath and Fleetwood. Ballantyne has featured in all of those however he’s only been limited to a total of 83 minutes. The Scot has came off the bench in all of the matches and he scored his side’s fourth goal versus Arbroath, tapping in from a rebounded shot. Ballantyne has showed promise in pre season and in his loan spells away from McDiarmid Park. Hopefully for St. Johnstone, he can do so once more in 21/22 and save them an investment in a new midfielder. 


St. Mirren - Jay Henderson

After narrowly missing out on top six as well as being knocked out of both the Betfred and Scottish Cups at the semi final stage, it was a painful yet progressive season for Jim Goodwin’s St. Mirren. The Buddies have several talented youngsters such as Ethan Erhahon, Cameron MacPherson and Kyle McAllister however it is Jay Henderson who I believe should be the one to watch in 21/22. The 19 year old has featured in all of St. Mirren’s games so far this season, in both friendlies and the Premier Sports Cup. Henderson is a right midfielder who is capable of playing right back and central midfield however he’s featured at left back a few times this season. The teenager scored in St. Mirren’s friendly against Ayr before he came off on the 58th minute. Henderson also won the penalty which saw St. Mirren take a 1-0 lead against Partick Thistle; some tricky play down the right hand side saw the Scot fouled in the box by Richard Foster. The Saints went on to win 2-0. Henderson was sent out on loan in the 20/21 season to Clyde although after only making a total of 6 games, he returned to Paisley in January. Henderson then went on to make 5 appearances for the Paisley Saints in the second half of last season, providing 2 assists. Hopefully Jay Henderson can get some game time this season for St. Mirren and possibly make this his breakthrough year. 


That concludes my list of SPFL Talents to Watch in 21/22. At the end of the season, I’ll be going back and reviewing all these players seasons to see if my predictions were accurate. Feel free to leave a comment down below and follow me on Twitter @Josh_Footblog. 

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