A year on: SPFL Talents to Watch

Almost a year ago now, in one of my first ever posts on this blog, I earmarked twelve young players you should watch in the 2021/22 Scottish Premiership season. 

Some have excelled and broke through at their respective clubs whilst others have already moved on to pastures new and today, I’ll be reviewing how each of my SPFL Talents to Watch in 2021/22 got on throughout the campaign. 

Aberdeen - Jack MacKenzie 

Two young Aberdeen full backs brokethrough at Pittodrie the 2021/22 season in Jack MacKenzie and Calvin Ramsay. Granted, the latter went on to enjoy the better season out of the pair, winning the Scottish Football Writer’s Association Young Player of the Year award but nonetheless, Jack MacKenzie still experienced a respectable campaign. 

It was MacKenzie’s first full season playing for the Aberdeen first team after he made a few appearances for the Dons at the tail end of the last campaign. 

In the most recent season, MacKenzie was able to rack up a total of 27 appearances across all competitions, a reputable amount when you consider his age and the fact Aberdeen changed managers midway through it. However, it was at the forefront of the campaign where the left back enjoyed the majority of his flourishing form. 

MacKenzie was involved in most of Aberdeen’s European qualifiers and assisted in their emphatic 5-1 win over Swedish side Hacken. He then netted the winner for his side in the league a few weeks later, curling a long range effort past Max Stryjek at the Tony Macaroni Arena in a 2-1 victory against Livingston. 

He suffered some injury problems throughout the season and the maximum amount of starts MacKenzie managed to string together was five however he did play from the start and contribute to all of Aberdeen’s post-split fixtures where they experienced varying results. This proved that Jim Goodwin does have faith in the young full back and hopefully it is trust that can help MacKenzie kick on in the upcoming 2022/23 season. 

Nonetheless, 27 games in which he scored once and assisted twice in his first full season as a player in the top flight in Scotland is not to be sniffed at for MacKenzie. 

Celtic - Stephen Welsh 

He initially broke through at Celtic towards the end of last season and in the current one, Stephen Welsh has proved himself to be a dependable back up option to either Carl Starfelt or Cameron Carter-Vickers at the hearts of the Hoops’ backline.  

Welsh played 24 times in the 2021/22 season, scoring headers against both Hearts in the league cup and Real Betis in the Europa League along the way. He was particularly prominent in the Celtic side at the forefront of the campaign before numerous reinforcements were brought in. 

Moreover, the twenty two year old was subject to transfer interest from Serie A in January however Celtic were against letting go of Welsh who would eventually go on to win the club’s academy player of the year award at the end of the season. 

Even if Cameron Carter-Vickers does sign for the club permanently this summer, centre back may be an area Celtic will look to upgrade on in spite of Stephen Welsh’s presence. However it cannot be denied the Scotland under twenty one captain has been nothing but reliable under Ange Postecoglou and is beginning to integrate himself as a noteworthy member of the first team squad. 

Dundee - Luke McCowan 

In his first season playing in Scotland’s top flight, Luke McCowan unfortunately suffered relegation with a Dundee side who finished rock bottom of the table. 

The twenty four year old made the majority of his appearances for the Dens Park club at left wing this season after signing on a free from Ayr United last summer. 

McCowan made 29 league appearances in the most recent campaign, scoring 4 goals and assisting 2. He showed brilliance in flashes with 4 of his 6 goal contributions coming in encounters with Motherwell and Ross County which were a few weeks apart. He was firmly man of the match in both of these matches. 

Prior to his move to Dundee, McCowan was a regular in the Scottish Championship and a likely spell in the division next season could help the attacker continue to build his reputation after a promising first season in the North East. 

Dundee United - Kieran Freeman

Dundee United have been known as consistent producers of talent in recent years and that was evident once more this campaign with the likes of Ross Graham and Archie Meekison earning significant opportunities in the first team, alongside Kieran Freeman. 

After catching my eye in the early stages of the Premier Sports Cup where throughout the competition he scored once and assisted thrice in 5 matches, I pointed out Freeman as a youngster to watch in the SPFL in the 2021/22 season. 

The lively full back went on to make 23 appearances for Tam Courts’ team in the league, scoring 1 goal and assisting 3. His solitary strike in the league came in a storming 3-0 victory at Easter Road when he coolly slotted home with his left foot from inside the box. 

It didn’t work out for the now twenty two year old when he first moved to Southampton as a teenager and after he returned to Dundee and enjoyed a loan spell at Peterhead in 2020/21, Freeman will look to build on a solid 2021/22 campaign going into next season as United look set to compete in European qualifiers. 

Hibernian - Daniel MacKay 

Young winger Daniel Mackay joined Hibs from Inverness in the summer transfer window for a minimal fee of around £200,000 according to Transfermarkt. 

The Scot showed some form in his early days in Leith, netting the winner in a pre-season friendly against Arsenal and also scoring away to FC Santa Coloma in the Europa Conference League in a tie which saw the Hibees progress to the third qualifying round of the competition. 

However, after a few appearances from the bench at the beginning of the league campaign, Mackay suffered an ankle injury which would keep out for around three months. This was of course a big blow to the youngster so early into his time at Hibernian and the sacking of Jack Ross (the man who brought him to the club in the first place) during his spell on the sidelines, wouldn’t have helped Mackay’s case either. 

The twenty one year old returned to fitness in January with Shaun Maloney then at the helm. Mackay wasn’t even able to show the former Belgium coach what he could do on the pitch before he was sent on loan to Kilmarnock until the end of the season. 

For Killie, Mackay made 12 appearances, failing to net but assisting once as he aided them in winning the Championship title and thus securing promotion to the Premiership for the 2022/23 season. 

Mackay didn’t particularly stand out in his time in Ayrshire but he certainly showed some promise in his early days at Hibs and with a new manager expected to be in charge going into the new campaign, it provides Mackay, and every other player in the Easter Road dressing room, with a clean slate and chance to impress. 

Hearts - Finlay Pollock 

I mentioned Finlay Pollock’s name as one to keep an eye on in this season’s Scottish Premiership after the seventeen year old racked up some substantial minutes for Hearts in the Premier Sports Cup group stages. Pollock even netted against Stirling Albion in a 2-0 win however he would go on to make no senior Hearts appearances throughout the remainder of the campaign after his start in the Jambos’ 1-0 home win over Inverness. 

Then in February, the attack minded midfielder headed out on loan to East Fife in Scottish League One where he ended up playing 7 times as the club finished bottom of the division. 

One thing Finlay Pollock has on his side however is his tender age. He turns just eighteen this summer yet the youngster will be looking to make an impact in Gorgie in 2021/22 as Hearts will undoubtedly have a packed schedule due to their European exploits thus giving Pollock the opportunity to impress. 

Livingston - Adam Lewis 

Liverpool loanee Adam Lewis failed to capture the imagination in his year at Livingston. He managed to make only 13 appearances for David Martindale’s side across all competitions in 2021/22, playing ninety minutes just four times with one of those ninety coming in a 1-0 win over eventual champions Celtic.  

The versatile twenty two year old will now return to his parent club this summer with just a year left on his contract there. This likely means that Liverpool will be keen to offload Lewis on a permanent basis in the coming months if possible - it will be interesting to see what teams would be in for him if this is the case after a less than inspiring year in Scotland. 

Motherwell - Connor Shields 

It didn’t work out for Connor Shields down South early in his career in spells at Sunderland and Aldershot. However, after a productive season at Queen of the South back in his homeland in 2020/21, Shields earned his move to Motherwell last summer. 

In his year first year in Lanarkshire, the twenty four year old made 29 appearances across all competitions. This in itself is quite an achievement when you consider the firepower the Steelmen have going forward with Tony Watt flourishing in the first half of the season and the likes of Kevin van Veen, Jordan Roberts and Kaiyne Woolery all within the ranks at Fir Park. 

In the games he played in the most recent campaign, Shields was able to score three goals and assist as many as Motherwell dramatically earned a top six spot and made it into Europa Conference League qualifiers. 

Motherwell will be hoping the new season can provide them with a new lease of life after a rather inconsistent 2021/22 campaign - as will Connor Shields who will be looking to make a greater impact at Motherwell in his second season at the club than he did in his first. 

Rangers - Nathan Patterson

Although he only made 11 appearances for Rangers across all competitions in the 2021/22 season, this, combined with his eye-catching displays for the Scotland national team convinced Everton to splash out approximately £12 million (Transfermarkt) on the highly attacking, energetic right back in January. 

His lack of game-time for Rangers in the opening half of the most recent season was mainly down to the fact club captain James Tavernier was ahead of him in the pecking order. It was extremely hard for Patterson to displace a player in the team who has tremendous attacking output and who is a general, all round, talented footballer. 

However, as mentioned, he earned his big money move down South to Merseyside which goes to show the high potential he has disclosed in his short career so far. 

At Everton, the twenty year old has had a tough time of it, racking up just 45 minutes of action which came against National League side Boreham Wood in the FA Cup. Frank Lampard has been reluctant to give Patterson a sufficient opportunity to display his abilities and with the Toffees narrowly avoiding relegation to the Championship, it remains to be see whether or not the right back will be provided with better chances for minutes next season or even potentially head out on loan. 

Ross County - Alex Robertson 

Ross County excelled in the 21/22 Scottish Premiership season as Malky Mackay guided the Staggies to a sixth place finish and European football. Unfortunately though, young central midfielder Alex Robertson wasn’t able to significantly contribute to this success in the Highlands. 

Robertson joined on an initial season long loan from Man City where he impressed at youth level. However, he managed to make only 3 league appearances for Ross County, failing to start in any of those and playing just 77 minutes in total. As a result, his loan was cut short and he returned to Manchester in January. 

It is fair to say it didn’t work out for the nineteen year old in Scotland and it will be intriguing to see if he has another go at senior football next season in another loan spell or if he continues his development at youth level - I suspect the former to be the most likely. 

St. Johnstone - Cammy Ballantyne 

I labelled Cammy Ballantyne as a player you should keep an eye on in the 2021/22 Scottish Premiership campaign after he enjoyed a loan spell at Montrose in the season prior. However in September of 2021, it was announced Ballantyne would temporarily join the Scottish League One side for another year. 

The central midfielder appeared 30 times for Stewart Petrie’s side across the league and play offs as Montrose played out an enthralling semi final with Airdrie in which they eventually lost 6-5 on aggregate meaning the club will stay in Scottish League One for the upcoming campaign. Throughout the 2021/22 season for Montrose, Ballantyne scored 3 goals and assisted 6 times as he disclosed his creative abilities along with his goalscoring ones. 

Whilst on loan in the North East, Ballantyne also signed a new contract at his parent club, St. Johnstone. The twenty one year old agreed to a deal that will keep him in Perth until at least the summer of 2024, proving there is a long-term future and plan for him at McDiarmid Park. 

No matter what division St. Johnstone play their football in next season, Cammy Ballantyne will be hoping he can make strides on his way to a first team breakthrough after a prosperous loan spell at Montrose. 

St. Mirren - Jay Henderson

Out of all of the players I’ve spoke of so far, St. Mirren man Jay Henderson probably had the greatest season. The twenty year old made 26 appearances for his club throughout 2021/22 as he enjoyed a breakthrough campaign under the guidance of both Jim Goodwin and Stephen Robinson. 

Henderson featured on the right hand side in the majority of the minutes he played for St. Mirren in the most recent season and has developed a knack for scoring goals of optimum quality. 

Both of his strikes this campaign were admirable ones with the first coming in the maiden game back after the winter break at Tannadice when he rattled into the top right corner from the edge of the box. The second came in the reverse fixture against Dundee United in a 2-1 defeat as Henderson took it past his man and magnificently looped the ball over Benjamin Siegrist and into the back of the net. 

The youngster’s exploits in 2021/22 saw him gain a range of plaudits such as a Scotland under 21 call up and first cap at that level as well as the St. Mirren young player of the year award. 

There is undoubtedly a bright future ahead for Jay Henderson and he will be looking to further add to his achievements from this campaign in the following one.  

Moreover, St. Mirren have history of producing some prevalent Scottish talents in recent years such as John McGinn and Kenny MacLean and you wouldn’t bet against Henderson being the next blooming product to come out of the Paisley club. 

Rounding Off 

It was great to reflect back upon my early season thoughts on these players along with how their campaigns actually panned out.

Over the coming weeks and months, look out for my next series of SPFL Talents to Watch which will pick out a player from each Scottish Premiership team for you to keep an eye on in the 2022/23 season. 

Until then, thank you for reading and your continued support throughout my first year of writing is greatly appreciated. Also, don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @Josh_Footblog where you’ll be able to find my work for sites other than my own.