Family ties will keep Ferguson on his toes

As football fans, we all love to see youngsters emerge and make an impact in the team we support. The Dons have a rich history in that respect with countless players coming through the ranks to etch their names indelibly in the club’s record books. The next to do so might well be Lewis Ferguson.

The teenager didn’t come through the Pittodrie set-up but benefitted hugely from being part of the highly successful Hamilton youth system under George Cairns, and while he has played in fewer than 30 senior matches, it is clear he has all the attributes needed by a modern-day midfielder.

That was evident the first time I watched young Lewis, and having seen him in a number of the games he played for Accies last season, I was thrilled when the news emerged that he was heading for the Dons.

I had no doubt it would be a good move for both parties, but he has surpassed my expectations with his performances over the past few months.

He does, of course, have a rich football background and the talent has been passed down through the generations, but even more importantly he has a strong family behind him, and has been imbued with qualities which will serve him well.

I work closely with his father, Derek, and had often asked how his boy was doing. Despite clearly being a proud dad, he never got carried away, and spoke often about the need for Lewis to work hard, to be respectful and to develop the values Derek holds dear. That is something Ferguson junior has clearly done.

Derek would be the first to admit that he has taken the ‘do as I say, not as I did’ approach, and he looks back with regret that he didn’t always act as professionally as he should have done during his playing days. It is a mistake he was determined that Lewis would not repeat.

The evidence suggests he has no worries on that score, but if Lewis were ever to step out of line, his old man and his brothers, Darren and Ross, would come down on him like a ton of bricks; they will keep him grounded if needed.

Derek McInnes has described young Lewis as ‘a dream’, and he seems eager to work hard and improve every day in training. Having the likes of Barry Robson, Paul Sheerin and the management duo guiding him will help in that respect.

At the start of the season I wondered whether Ferguson would be given an opportunity. He was seen as one for the future, but the question was could he be one for the present?

Given that Derek had signed more experienced midfielders in Stephen Gleeson and Chris Forrester, there was some doubt about as to when Lewis would get his chance.

Having liked what he had seen in pre-season, the manager named the youngster in his team for the Burnley game at Pittodrie, and he hasn’t looked back.

Lewis was missing because of injury throughout September but has played in every other game, and must now be one of Derek’s automatic picks.

He has also shown a knack of scoring impressive and important goals, and obviously has the big game mentality required of any player who pulls on an Aberdeen shirt. If he continues to excel as he has, there is no limit as to where his career might take him.

Man of the moment: Lewis Ferguson