One-time Rangers 'wonderkid' joins SPFL side following exit from English non-league club

Former Rangers starlet Kai Kennedy has signed for SPFL League One side Queen of the South - 12 months after opening up on his struggles at being described as a ‘wonderkid’ at Ibrox.

The 22-year-old winger became a free agent after leaving English National League outfit York City last month and has returned north of the border to pen a one-year deal with the Doonhamers.

Capped at various youth levels for Scotland, Kennedy previously enjoyed a productive loan spell with Falkirk during the 2022/23 season. He began his career at Ibrox as a youth prospect in 2009 before having temporary stints in the lower leagues with Inverness, Raith Rovers, Dunfermline and Hamilton Academical.

The 22-year-old was once of interest to some of Europe’s biggest clubs including Manchester City, Roma and Bayern Munich, but he failed to make his first-team breakthrough in Govan and brought an end to his 14-year stay in Govan last summer after making just one senior appearance.

He spent last term with York City, featuring 19 times for the Minstermen across all competitions before agreeing to mutually terminate his contract to allow him to head back up to Scotland. Newly-appointed Queens boss Peter Murphy will now attempt to get the youngster’s career back on track in Dumfries. He said: “We are really excited to have signed Kai. He is a good young player with a lot of first team experience. He has consistently been a thorn in the side of teams with his ability to quickly more down the wing and deliver the ball into the box. As well as being a provider he also weighs in with goals of his own. We feel he will be a real asset for us, we are delighted to have him in the squad and we look forward to working with him.”

Last year, Kennedy revealed how the pressures of being a footballer at a top club saw him “lose his way” in the Rangers academy. He admitted: “Coming through at Rangers I was the wonder kid, I was flying. I was training with the first team every day. But when contract talks stalled, everything went up in the air. I was back down to the academy and sent on loan. That’s not as easy as people think. It’s a completely different environment to what you’re used to at Rangers.

“I had a lot of pressure on me and I’ll happily admit now I lost my way a bit. I wasn’t mature enough, I was acting like a wee boy. Maybe I just wasn’t grown up enough at that stage. I did things like going out too often, which I shouldn’t have done. But it’s growing up, isn’t it? It’s about learning. Now I’m at an age when I’ve matured.

“At 18 I was still living with my family and I made mistakes like every teenager. But I’ve changed and I know where I want to get to. I believe I can get there. Everyone spoke about me a lot at 17, 18 – and I lost it. I wouldn’t say it went to my head or that I thought I’d made it. I knew I had miles to go. But when there was stuff going on between Rangers and my agent around a contract, it affected me. I lost it for a bit. I was confused and all over the place. I was doing well under Steven Gerrard.

“But before I knew it, I was in Inverness. And it feels like I’ve never found my way back. For a young boy, that’s difficult to deal with. But I’m now at the age where I know there’s only one place I want to get to – the top. It was all a learning experience. And you know what? I’m glad I’ve done it all because I’ve played over 100 games in my career already. Maybe that wouldn’t have happened at Rangers.

“I know what it’s like to be in a men’s changing room and how to deal with it. That’s what matured me. This is where I’ve really learned. At 17 when I was reading about all these big clubs who were supposedly in for me, I’d think: ‘Wow.’ I love Rangers but every kid’s dream is to go to one of the big clubs in England or abroad. So when I was reading that big bids were being made, I was hoping one would come off. But they didn’t materialise. And as a young boy, that’s hard to deal with.”