Pollock cherishes his ‘dream’ Cobblers debut despite ‘gutting’ defeat

Young midfielder Scott Pollock described making his Cobblers debut as the realisation of a childhood dream, despite the ‘absolutely gutting’ way it ended at Cambridge United on Saturday.
Scott Pollock. Picture: Sharon LuceyScott Pollock. Picture: Sharon Lucey
Scott Pollock. Picture: Sharon Lucey

The 17-year-old was a surprise member of the squad that travelled to the Abbey Stadium as injuries forced manager Keith Curle to name a youthful, academy-dominated bench, with Pollock joined by fellow teenagers Camron McWilliams and Jack Newell.

And Pollock would go one better when he was sent on for his professional debut in place of the injured Shaun McWilliams shortly before half-time, becoming the first player ever to go through the club’s education programme and feature for the first-team.

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He said afterwards: “I came on earlier than I thought! It’s what every kid dreams of – to become a professional footballer and play at a professional level.

“I only came through the BTEC a year ago and I joined the youth team this season so I want to thank all the coaches for all their hard work that they’ve done for me and obviously I’m grateful to Keith for the opportunity.

“It’s a big change from youth football but I had a couple of games with St Neots and that was a good experience for me in men’s football. I still have to adapt and get used to it but I thought I did all right.”

Pollock showed some promising touches in central midfield alongside another academy player in Jay Williams, but his debut would end in heartbreak when David Amoo grabbed a last-gasp 3-2 victory for the U’s.

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“I’m absolutely gutted about the result,” admitted Pollock, a lifelong Cobblers supporter. “The timings of the goals were disappointing, two minutes before half-time and then obviously in the last minute.

“It’s gutting but we have to look back through the footage, see where we went wrong and go again next week.

“We’ve had a few ups and downs this season but we take every game as it comes and look to get three points from each match.

“I’m happy to have made my debut and it’s good for my development and I enjoyed the experience.”

Keep an eye out for an in-depth feature with Scott Pollock later in the week.