TALLY HO HO
ABERDEEN THE WRITE STUFF
LEWIS FERGUSON may be the Scottish Football Writers’ Association’s Young Player of the Year but it hasn’t stopped him being put back in his place by his dad.
The Aberdeen star beat strong competition from Ali McCann, Aaron Hickey and Allan Campbell to lift the top award.
Ferguson has 11 goals in his two seasons at Pittodrie and told his father Derek he’d blitz his 16-goal league haul in a career with Rangers, Hearts and Sunderland.
But Ferguson senior slapped down his son by telling him he already had league and Skol Cup winning medals by the time he was 20.
Ferguson said: “I was trying to catch my dad in terms of goals. I always give him stick about that.
“I think it was about 16 or something so I’m going to try and beat that as quickly as I can.
“I told him I was coming for him and he turned round and told me he had a league and a League Cup winners’ medal by my age.
“He put me right in my place but I’d also love to go and get trophies as well.
“When you see the medals, it makes you that wee bit more determined to go and do it yourself and experience that feeling of winning something.
“I’m pretty sure it’s something the rest of the boys in the squad want to experience as well.”
Ferguson has been linked with Rangers and is also wanted by Championship promotion pushers Brentford.
The fact his dad made a name for himself at Ibrox only strengthens those links.
His uncle Barry also captained Rangers but Ferguson doesn’t feel extra pressure due to his surname.
He said: “No, in other people’s eyes there will be pressure because of the name but it is my own career. I wouldn’t say it doesn’t have anything to do with my family because they are there to help me but it is my own career and it is myself who is making the decisions. I don’t feel any added pressure.
“I can see why people think that but I don’t feel any added pressure to go and achieve things.
“I put pressure on myself to go and achieve things and the pressure is coming from me to go and perform.”
Ferguson is after silverware of his own with Aberdeen and another big aim is to follow in his dad’s footsteps and to break into the Scotland set-up.
He said: “Hopefully – but there are a lot of good midfielders at the moment.
“There are boys playing in the Premier League week in, week out and and there are boys playing in Scotland with Rangers and Celtic.
“They’re doing well, so it will be tough to try to get into that squad because they are really good players. But it is not something that scares me, it is something I want to do.
“I’ll keep working as hard as possible and if and when the time comes to be called up, it will be a great honour.
“But at the moment I’m just focusing on getting back training with Aberdeen and seeing everyone again.”
Derek McInnes took a punt when he signed Ferguson from Hamilton two seasons ago and gambled on a tribunal fee.
Since then Ferguson has more than repaid that £175,000 and put another zero and a lot more of top of that initial valuation.
He relished the increased responsibility last season with Funso Ojo and Craig Bryson out for long spells.
Ferguson added: “I took it on the chin and used that experience to try to make myself a better player, a better talker and a better reader of the game on the pitch. It was a good experience having that added responsibility.”