Scott Williamson admits he’ll miss the camaraderie at Cambuslang Rangers but is buzzing to test himself in the Championship with Queen’s Park next season.
The Fernhill forward is making a huge leap from the West of Scotland Football League Conference B last season (tier seven in the pyramid) to the second tier in the SPFL Championship next term, having signed a three-and-a-half year deal with the Spiders in January.
He was loaned back to Camby to help them clinch the Conference B title in the game’s seventh tier this season but after achieving that aim, the 50-goal striker now starts full-time football in earnest with Owen Coyle’s side.
Williamson was already training with his new side during his last six months at Somervell Park and featured for their reserves in the Glasgow Cup, which they lost in the final to Rangers B.
While he feels a tinge of sadness at leaving the club that brought him through the youth ranks to first-team football, he is excited to achieve a life-long dream.
The 21-year-old, who was also crowned Camby’s player of the year, said: “This was my goal since I was about four or five years old, to be a full-time footballer.
“My family are chuffed and over the moon for me, so I’m excited for next season.
“It’s been good training with the team so far this season. It has been a lot harder for me and a lot better for me at the same time as well.
“So we’ll see how it goes next season.
“I think it will make me a better player playing with better players at Queen’s Park, and training every day now will help me improve as well.
“I’ve really enjoyed it so far. I’ve stopped working now – I worked in a warehouse – and I can just focus on my football for the next few years, which is what I love to do.
“The three year deal is something I’m really happy with and I just hope I can do well for Queen’s Park now.
“I will miss Cambuslang and all the people I’ve had around me. We are all friends, everyone gets along well. Nobody really argues in the team and we put our heads down.
“We never got ahead of ourselves and never thought the league was done, right up until that last game.
“But I’m happy to be moving on to a new challenge.”
It’s been a rapid rise for Williamson, who was only promoted from Camby’s under-21s at the start of this season’s campaign.
Before joining the Somervell Park side he played locally at Cambuslang FA for four years.
It was his nose for goal that saw Camby co-bosses Billy Campbell and Paul McColl show no hesitation in handing him his first team chance.
That paid huge dividends as his scoring spree contributed to a sizeable chunk of Camby’s 114 league goals in 2021/22.
Having netted half a century of goals for Camby, Spiders fans may be expecting a decent return from the new-boy next season. But Williamson isn’t focused on numbers and hopes to take the sound advice from former Gers team-mates, which includes ex-Spider John Gemmell.
“I don’t have any goal targets because I’d just be happy if I play next season,” Williamson stressed.
“I’ll just need to see what happens in pre-season and what the manager thinks. Getting 50 goals is beyond what I could have imagined at the start of the season. I just took it one game at a time and I just kept scoring.
“I went through a wee dry spell around November time and I started picking up the form again after Christmas. Thankfully I continued that up to the end of the season.
“I couldn’t have done it without all the guys. They’ve all been good with me. Guys like Scott Anson, Tony Stevenson, Alan Reid and John Gemmell as well. They all taught me stuff along the way so it’s been good to have them there.
“They have told me to go to Queen’s Park, keep my head down, be myself and don’t think about the step up too much.”
He departs with plenty of silverware to show for his stunning season. A player of the year and players’ player of the year prize, top goalscorer award and a league winners’ medal means he leaves on a huge high.
He added: “It’s been a good season for everybody. Everyone has played well and I’m happy that the club got promoted as well, so they will be in a good place to kick on next season.
“I was really happy with my awards. I didn’t expect to win both of them so I was chuffed.
“To leave with the promotion is great as well. They all deserve it. The management team and the players have all been great.
“Everyone has played their role, even the committee with the work they’ve put in. And I’ve got to say Billy and Paul were great to deal with during the signing for Queen’s Park.
“They are great guys and I wish them all the best for next season.”
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