Ross County forward Kieran Phillips ‘a better person’ for coming through career-threatening injuries while in youth academy at Everton
While Ross County manager Don Cowie lauded Kieran Phillips’ physicality when bringing him to Dingwall, the attacker has a mental strength born out of major injury battles too.
The 25-year-old’s pace was noted by the Staggies boss as a reason for the signing, noting that Phillips brings a different profile to County’s forward options.
That will show itself on the pitch, but what will not be so obvious at first glance is the battles Phillips has faced just to get to this point.
Having started out in football in Huddersfield Town’s academy, the forward was scouted by Everton and joined the Toffees at under-13 level.
However, just a couple of years later his burgeoning football career was put at risk when he suffered a double knee fracture at 16 years old that left him bed-ridden for three months.
A return to Huddersfield in January 2020 would signal a breakthrough into the senior game, and Phillips set about proving himself all over again on loan at Walsall, Exeter City, Morecambe, Shrewsbury Town and finally Sacramento Republic in the USA before signing permanently for County last week.
“At 16 it is tough – there were a lot of hard times,” he reflected.
“I needed a machine to move my knees and bend them. I’d never had an injury before, and then I had everything at once.
“I missed my whole scholarship at Everton, although they were really good with me and gave me an extra year so I could prove myself, and that’s what I did.
“Before I had the injury, I was really small. I sort of did all my growing while I was injured and came out the other side a completely different player.
“I was always fast, but I grew into my body as time went on and I’m in a good place at the moment.
“In the last few years, I feel I’ve completely got over that. It’s been and gone – and I’m ready to kick on now.
“It was definitely a struggle, but you come out the other side a better person. You grow from it and become stronger, so it stands me in good stead for what I’m doing now.”
Ross County were interested in Phillips last summer, but with the forward only midway through his loan in the USA they had to wait until this month to bring him to Dingwall.
That may not have been a bad thing, as 15 goals in 31 appearances for Sacramento means he moved to the Highlands high on confidence.
Ironically, his time in America also gave him some idea of what to expect in Scotland, as one of his teammates at Sacramento was Inverness Caledonian Thistle’s Scottish Cup winner Nick Ross.
“Nick was actually one of the people I called to ask about coming here to Ross County,” Phillips continued.
“He was telling me all about Caley Thistle’s success and the Scottish Cup final, a really nice guy. We’re close, me and him.
“The lifestyle was very different. It was very hot and a lot more relaxed than in the UK.
“It had the feel of a holiday where you just played football in between. For what I needed in my career, it was perfect.
“The standard was good. It isn’t heavily televised over here so people aren’t really aware of the level, but you encounter players who used to play in this league in Scotland and others from a very good level.
“It is probably a bit more technical than England, but not as physical.
“Here it is faster-paced than America, for sure. I’ve been impressed with the lads in training and I’m looking forward to kicking on.
“I was looking for stability. I’ve done loans for the last three seasons and it can get a bit frustrating moving all the time and taking your life somewhere else.
“It is nice, at this stage, to settle and have a real go at something where you know you're not going to leave in six months. That’s a real positive for me.”
