Lewis Ferguson capped a superb debut season at Pittodrie by winning the AFC Young Player of the year award plus Goal of the Season at Thursday night’s annual prize dinner.

Lewis last week spoke to the Red Matchday editor about his campaign.

Winning comes naturally to Lewis Ferguson. You can tell from his attitude on the pitch that he hates losing, never wants to come up short, always wants the best.

But there is the occasional exception to the rule for while he didn’t carry off the Young Player of the Year prize at last week’s PFA Scotland awards, simply being on the shortlist was honour enough. For this season anyway…

“I was really pleased to be nominated for the young player of the year award, as anyone would be. It was good to see that so many professionals that I have played against week in week out this season have noticed me and the work I have put in.

“It does make it extra special that it is your fellow professionals, especially as I have kicked them up and down the park this season, so I was quite surprised!

“Personally, it has been a good season. I have played a lot of games and scored some important goals. As a team, we reached the final of the League Cup and the semi-final of the Scottish Cup and I have played in Europe. At this age, it has been very good.

“Overall, the season has been a bit up and down, too inconsistent. We’ve won some big games but also had some disappointment along the way. In that way, it has not been a successful season. A successful season is winning trophies, but all the same, I have learned a lot.

“I never had any doubts about coming in and doing well at Aberdeen when I joined from Hamilton last summer. I am very driven and quietly confident in my own ability. I don’t go shouting about it, that is not the type of person I am, but I believe in my ability.

“I knew that if I worked hard and proved to the staff and the players that I was training with every day that I was good enough to get into that starting XI, once that I got in, I would work as hard as possible to stay in. Since the very start of the season, I have kicked on and never looked back.

“Every one of the players was very good with me when I arrived. They made me feel very welcome and helped me settle in. In that dressing room, it is so easy to get along with everyone.

“I obviously knew Mikey Devlin already, he was my club captain at Hamilton. From the age of about 14, he was someone I always looked up to and went to for advice. It was nice to see him when I came up to Aberdeen and I sit next to him in the changing room. It made me feel really comfortable. I knew pretty quickly that the boys had taken to me, so that allowed me to focus on my football.

“Once I got myself into the starting XI, I felt so comfortable here. I got my head down and kept working hard. When you are training every day with international players day in day out, it is only going to improve your game.

“Derek McInnes has been different class with me since I first arrived in Aberdeen as well. I was 18 when I moved up, moved away from all my family and friends. He has been brilliant in the way he has looked after me. He has helped me so much and has made me a better player. All the staff have been the same as well.

“Moving away from home has helped me become more mature. You suddenly have to start doing everything for yourself! I was used to my mum and dad doing everything for me. It has helped me become a better person and I think it has also helped on the football side as well because I have to be more responsible and that has helped make me a better player.

“That is something that might become even more important next season. There will be a lot of changes this summer, we know that, including Graeme Shinnie moving on which is a real shame. I have a good relationship with Graeme on and off the pitch. He is a very good professional who performs week in week out. He is so consistent and so hard working. It is good to play alongside someone like that. He is everywhere on the pitch and does both sides of the game. He is someone I really enjoyed playing alongside. I would have loved to have played alongside him for a few more years but I wish him all the best.

“There are a few other boys out of contract but we don’t know yet who is leaving and who is staying, though it was great news that Joe and Andy have signed new contracts. We know that other players will move on though. It is up to the staff and the club to see which players come in and hopefully make us stronger. I would be comfortable taking on more responsibility next season.

“There are so many good young players at Aberdeen at the moment. You have Dean Campbell, Connor McLennan and Bruce Anderson who have all made an impact at some point this season. You saw in the Scottish Cup semi-final it was Dean and I playing in central midfield. He is two years younger than me I think. It is so impressive for a boy of that age to come straight into the side in such a high-profile game. He also played in the quarter-final at Ibrox. He is very impressive the way he goes about his business.

“We are all looking to step up again next season. Personally, there is so much more to come from me. I think there is so much more I can work on in my game. Not everything I do is perfect. I am still young and learning. Coming to the end of this season, going into next season, I will be working on everything I can to take it up a level again and to push on. I will be working on becoming quicker and stronger, getting quicker feet, and moving better, getting better technically. To stay in the team I have to perform a consistent level.

“I’m looking to just get better and better and see what happens from there. It is every boy’s dream to play for their country so of course, playing for Scotland one day is an ambition and something I will look to do in the future. I’m not saying I am trying to get in the squad right now. I’m enjoying being part of the U21 set up. There is a good group of boys there, boys who are playing week in week out who are playing first team football at a high level. If you perform well week in week out, and you work hard then you will get noticed in this league”.

Lewis has certainly got himself noticed courtesy of his knack of scoring important – and spectacular – goals. Which stands out the most?

“I’ve scored a few good ones, a few I will not forget! The Burnley goal was massive for me. It was a huge moment. It was my first senior goal and for it to come in the way it did, against an English Premier League side in Europe, it was all a bit surreal. That is my favourite because of the type of goal it was.

“My second favourite was the goal at Hampden against Rangers, because it was such a special occasion for the club, and it got us to a final. My third favourite was my overhead winner in the last minute against Livingston.

“My goal against Kilmarnock, my free-kick in the final few minutes, gets forgotten about a bit but it could yet prove to be a vital goal come the end of the season if we finish above Kilmarnock”.
As with any young player, it hasn’t been all roses for Lewis, especially at Hamden where he has seen the real highs and lows of the game, scoring a late winner against Rangers, then being sent off against Celtic.

“The squad we had this season was good enough to win a trophy and I think we were a bit unlucky to be beaten by a good Celtic team in both cups. We had a tough run to the League Cup final, we beat three Premier League teams, beating Hibs at Easter Road then Rangers at Hampden but the final did not quite go our way. We were close, but Celtic were the better team. In the recent semi-final, a lot of thigs did not go our way and we all made mistakes. I made a mistake myself. I hold my hands up to that. It wasn’t our day.

“I had a chat with the manager the week after the game. He knows that I know that I made a mistake. He didn’t need to go into any detail. I knew myself as soon as it happened that I had made a mistake. It was just the way the game was going. It was running away from us and the emotions were running high.

“I was just so desperate for something to happen and I made a huge mistake and it is something I regret. I immediately felt for the players who were left on the park because I let them down. I let the fans down. I let the staff down. I apologise for that. I am that sort of person, I will own up when I do wrong.

“I spoke to my dad when I got home that night. He was at the game watching. He understood what it is like. He has been out there when games are going like that, when emotions are running high. He had a little chat with me which made me feel a bit better. It is probably the lowest I have been as an Aberdeen player. It was so disappointing.

“After that I tried to forget about it straight away. I did not want to keep thinking about it. You have to move on. As soon as I got into training the next day, I got my head down and looked forward to the next game that I was available to play in. The manager told me to get it out of my head and move on.

“These moments have made me a stronger player. Yes, all the good moments you enjoy but I feel the bad moments make you stronger. We all make mistakes. We are all human. I made a mistake in the semi-final and I have learned from it. I was so disappointed in myself but once it happens you can’t go back and change things. You have to move on.

“It is helpful to have my dad to talk to after games, good and bad. He used to complain that he was always known as Barry’s brother! Now he is Lewis’ dad! He is always winding me up about that. He never used to let me win at anything. Never. If I was doing keepie uppies and I did 60, he would come out and do 61 and then kick the ball away! My mum used to rage at him. But it gave me a winning mentality which is massive.

“Since I was a young boy, it was my dream to be a professional footballer. Just ability is not enough. It is about hard work. It’s about digging in and working as hard as possible. To get in the Hamilton starting XI, I had to do that. And the same again when I came up here. Off the pitch I am as calm as anything but on the pitch I am a different person”.

With one game to go, the reality is stark – the Dons need to win and see if that’s enough to nip ahead of Kilmarnock.

“Our aim at the start of the season, our first aim was to qualify for Europe. Yes, we want to do well in the cups, and we have done ok, but not enough. Coming into these last two games, we want to try and secure that third spot.

“It has been a tough few weeks. We have been without a lot of our marquee players. But we all need to pull together and try and get a win on Sunday. We still have a lot of boys out injured but we have enough good to players to secure the win which will hopefully give us that third spot and European football for next season.”