Premier League starlet bags first goal – and Scotland missed out on him

SCOTLAND enjoyed a positive international break last week, beating Croatia and Poland to finish third in their Nations League group.

Ben Doak was the star of the show with some electrifying performances – but another young ace who Scotland have missed out on has returned to club football with a bang.

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Crystal Palace claimed a 2-2 draw away to Aston Villa in the Premier League yesterday, and took the lead late in the first half with a flowing counter-attack after keeper Dean Henderson had saved a Villa penalty.

The move was finished off by Justin Devenny, making just his second start for Palace after what had been a very Scottish-centred young career to this point.

The 21-year-old left the Kilmarnock academy in 2021 and had a brief spell in the Lowland League with Broomhill FC, before spending two seasons with Airdrie in League One.

He was snapped up for the Palace academy in summer 2023, spending last season in the reserves league before making his Premier League debut against Fulham earlier this month.

The midfielder was born and raised in Scotland, but made his international debut for Northern Ireland last week, who he qualifies for through his mother.

He had made seven appearances for the Northern Ireland u21s, but would still have been eligible for a senior Scotland cap before he made his international debut off the bench in a 2-2 draw against Luxembourg.

Airdrie were quick to congratulate their former star on his goal, taking to X, formerly Twitter, to mark the occasion.

They posted: “Congratulations to ex-Diamond Justin Devenny, who capped a week to remember by grabbing his first goal for Crystal Palace today.

“We don’t know if the finish was as good as his one from the 2023 play-off semi-final, but we’re sure it’s the first of many – well done, Justin!”

Meanwhile, Ben Doak is now a marked man according to his Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick.

The winger continued his Scotland heroics for his club side yesterday, winning a penalty in Boro’s 6-2 thrashing of Oxford United.

Carrick is happy with the on-loan Liverpool ace’s flying form, but is worried over the extra attention it could bring.

He said: “Ben is going to be a marked man now and he’s going to have to deal with it.

“I thought it wasn’t a great tackle on him for the penalty – it could have been a red card – but I’m not going to complain about it.

“We know what the boy is capable of and it’s exciting, there’s no getting away from it.”

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