Lawrence Shankland

Lawrence Shankland

Shankland with Scotland in 2019
Personal information
Full name	Lawrence Shankland [1]
Date of birth	(1995-08-10) 10 August 1995 (age 29) [2]
Place of birth	Glasgow, Scotland
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) [3]
Position(s)	Striker
Team information
Current team	Heart of Midlothian
Number	9
Youth career
2009–2012	Queen's Park
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2012–2013	Queen's Park	34	(11)
2013–2017	Aberdeen	17	(0)
2014	→ Dunfermline Athletic (loan)	13	(7)
2015–2016	→ St Mirren (loan)	31	(10)
2016–2017	→ St Mirren (loan)	17	(0)
2017	→ Greenock Morton (loan)	16	(4)
2017–2019	Ayr United	61	(50)
2019–2021	Dundee United	59	(32)
2021–2022	Beerschot	26	(5)
2022–	Heart of Midlothian	93	(51)
International career‡
2015	Scotland U21	4	(2)
2019–	Scotland	16	(3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 26 January 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024

Lawrence Shankland (born 10 August 1995) is a footballer who plays as a striker for Scottish Premiership club Heart of Midlothian and the Scotland national team.

Shankland began his career at Queen's Park before moving to Aberdeen in 2013. He played on loan with Dunfermline Athletic, St Mirren and Greenock Morton before joining Ayr United in 2017. He signed for Dundee United in 2019 and made his debut for Scotland later that year. In 2021 Shankland moved to Belgian club Beerschot, but returned to Scotland after one year, signing with Hearts.

Club career

Queen's Park

Shankland was born in Glasgow and attended Bannerman High School in Baillieston. ^[4] He progressed through the Queen's Park youth system and was their top goalscorer in the 2012–13 season, having moved to the senior squad straight from the under-17 team; ^[5] he also worked part-time as a tool setter in a local plumbing supplies company, a position arranged by the amateur club to help their young players earn a wage. ^[4] He scored his first senior goal on 4 August 2012, aged 16, in a Scottish League Cup tie against Airdrieonians. ^[6]

Shankland signed for Aberdeen at the end of the season. ^{[7] [8]} He was one of three Queen's Park players to move to top flight Scottish clubs at that time, as Andy Robertson and Aidan Connolly signed for Dundee United. ^{[7] [4]} Blair Spittal also made the move to Dundee United a year later.

Aberdeen

Shankland was initially placed in the Aberdeen under-20 squad, as he adjusted to full-time professional training. ^{[8] [4]} He made his debut appearance for Aberdeen in September 2014, in a 3–2 victory against Inverness CT. ^[9] After impressing in the under-20s, scoring plenty of goals, and making first team appearances as a substitute, Shankland signed a new contract to run until summer 2017; ^{[10] [4]} however, he was loaned to lower-division clubs for the vast majority of its duration. At the end of the 2016–17 season, Aberdeen confirmed that Shankland would be leaving the club. ^[11]

Dunfermline loan

He moved to Dunfermline Athletic on loan for the latter part of the 2013–14 season. ^[12] The 18-year-old striker scored seven league goals during his short spell in Fife; however, injury prevented him taking part in the Pars' end-of-season promotion play-off with local rivals Cowdenbeath which ended in defeat. ^[13]

St Mirren and Morton loans

Shankland was loaned to St Mirren in August 2015 for the rest of the 2015–16 season. ^[14] He scored his first goal for the Buddies in a 2–1 home defeat to Raith Rovers on 18 September 2015. ^[15] Shankland scored 10 goals in 32 appearances during his loan spell, and returned to Aberdeen at the end of the season. ^[16]

In July 2016 it was confirmed that Shankland had returned to St Mirren, on a season-long loan. ^[17] However, having failed to score any league goals in the first half of the season, his St Mirren deal was cut short and on 11 January 2017, he moved on loan to their rivals, fellow Scottish Championship side Greenock Morton. ^[18] After helping the club to a fourth-place finish, his final appearance for Morton was in the Scottish Premiership playoff defeat to Dundee United. ^[19]

Ayr United

In September 2017, free agent Shankland signed a short-term contract to play for Scottish League One club Ayr United until the following January. ^[20] On 24 March 2018 he scored a hat-trick against former club Queen's Park. ^[21] Ayr won the league by one point, and after finishing with 29 goals, Shankland was named as the division's PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year. ^[22]

He started the 2018–19 season with a hat-trick against former club Morton in the League Cup. ^[23] On 28 July, he scored a "stunning goal" from 45 yards as Ayr defeated Partick Thistle to qualify for the knockout stage of the competition. ^[24] With a goal against Dunfermline on 25 August 2018, Shankland moved to 41 goals in 42 games for the Honest Men. ^[25]

In November 2018, he scored four goals in a league fixture away to Dundee United which ended 5–0 and put Ayr five points clear at the top of the table. ^[26] However he then sustained an injury, and Ayr's form deteriorated in his absence. He returned towards the end of the season, but the team's campaign ended with defeat to Inverness CT in the opening round of the Premiership promotion play-offs, having finished in fourth position. ^[27] Shankland, whose total return was 34 goals in 41 games, was nominated for the division's PFA Player of the Year Award, ^[28] but lost out to another prolific striker, Stephen Dobbie. Both were named in the Team of the Year. ^[29]

Dundee United

On 3 July 2019 it was announced that Shankland had left Ayr to join fellow Championship side Dundee United on a three-year contract, turning down offers from other clubs in both England and Scotland. ^{[30] [31]} He scored on his debut for the club in a Scottish League Cup tie against Hearts on 12 July 2019, ^[32] and scored four goals in a 4–1 victory against Inverness Caledonian Thistle on the opening day of the 2019–20 Scottish Championship season. ^[33] Shankland was named Scottish Championship Player of the Month for August 2019, having scored eight goals in four appearances during the month. ^[34] The season was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland, and curtailed a month later, with Dundee United declared winners and promoted; ^[35] up to that point Shankland had scored 24 league goals to finish as the division's top scorer, and maintained the ratio of almost a goal-per-game he had set at Ayr, with a total of 28 from 33 appearances.

On 12 January 2021, Shankland scored with a "wonder strike" from 53 yards (48 m) to secure a 2–2 draw against St Johnstone. ^[36]

Beerschot

On 11 August 2021, Shankland moved to Belgian side Beerschot for an undisclosed fee. ^{[37] [38]} Shankland scored five league goals for Beerschot during the 2021–22 season as they were relegated from the Belgian top division. ^[39]

Heart of Midlothian

2022–23

Shankland returned to Scottish football in July 2022, signing a three-year contract with Heart of Midlothian. ^[39] He scored his first goal for Hearts in a 1–1 draw with Hibernian at Easter Road on 7 August 2022. ^[40]

After a season-ending injury to club captain Craig Gordon in a match on 28 December 2022, Shankland was named team captain for the rest of the season. ^[41]

Shankland became the first Hearts' player since John Robertson in the 1991–92 season to score 20 goals in all competitions following his goal in the Scottish Cup against Hibs to make it 2–0. ^[42]

2023–24

In Gordon's continued absence, Shankland retained team captaincy for the 2023–24 season. His second season at Hearts showed a similar prolific form as his first, hitting 50 club goals by February 2024, less than 18 months after joining the club, becoming only the second player to hit the milestone in the 21st century alongside Jamie Walker. ^[43]

International career

Shankland represented Scotland under-18s in Victory Shield matches against the other home nations in 2012. ^[44] He was first selected for the Scotland national under-21 football team in March 2015; he made his debut away to Hungary, scoring two late goals in a 2–1 victory. He made three other under-21 appearances, also in 2015, producing one draw and two defeats. ^[45]

On 1 October 2019, Scotland manager Steve Clarke called up Shankland to the senior squad for the first time. ^[46] He won his first cap when he came on as a second-half substitute in the side's 4–0 defeat by Russia on 10 October ^[47] (playing alongside national team captain Andy Robertson for the first time since their time at Queen's Park in the fourth tier of Scottish football, nearly seven years earlier) ^[48] and three days later made his first start and scored his first goal, the fourth in a 6–0 victory over San Marino at Hampden Park. ^[49]

Shankland was recalled to the squad in March 2023, as an injury replacement for Ché Adams. ^[50] He scored his second international goal on 16 November 2023, a late equaliser in a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match against Georgia. ^[51] Shankland had again been a late addition to the squad as an injury replacement for Adams. ^[51]

On 23 March 2024, Shankland was named in Scotland's starting XI for the first time since 2019 in a UEFA Euro 2024 warm-up match against the Netherlands. ^[52]

On 7 June 2024, he was named in Scotland's 26-man squad for Euro 2024. ^[53] He played the final eight minutes of the 5–1 loss to hosts Germany in the opening match of the tournament on 14 June. ^[54] He went on to appear as a substitute against both Switzerland and Hungary as Scotland finished bottom of Group A with one point from three matches. ^{[55] [56]}

Career statistics

Club

As of 26 January 2025 (UTC)

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Queen's Park	2011–12 [57]	Scottish Third Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	2012–13 [58] [3]		33	11	3	1	3	1	4 [a]	2	43	15
	Total		34	11	3	1	3	1	4	2	44	15
Aberdeen	2013–14 [59]	Scottish Premiership	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2014–15 [60]		17	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0
	2015–16 [61]		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2016–17 [62]		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		17	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	0
Dunfermline Athletic (loan)	2013–14 [59]	Scottish League One	13	7	1	0	0	0	0	0	14	7
	Total		13	7	1	0	0	0	0	0	14	7
St Mirren (loan)	2015–16 [61]	Scottish Championship	31	10	1	0	0	0	0	0	32	10
	2016–17 [62]		17	0	1	2	3	1	3 [b]	1	24	4
	Total		48	10	2	2	3	1	3	1	56	14
Greenock Morton (loan)	2016–17 [62]	Scottish Championship	16	4	0	0	0	0	2 [c]	0	18	4
	Total		16	4	0	0	0	0	2	0	18	4
Ayr United	2017–18 [63]	Scottish League One	30	26	3	3	0	0	0	0	33	29
	2018–19 [64]	Scottish Championship	31	24	1	1	6	9	3 [d]	0	41	34
	Total		61	50	4	4	6	9	3	0	74	63
Dundee United	2019–20 [65]	Scottish Championship	26	24	2	2	4	2	1 [b]	0	33	28
	2020–21 [66]	Scottish Premiership	32	8	4	1	0	0	0	0	36	9
	2021–22 [67]		1	0	0	0	4	3	0	0	5	3
	Total		59	32	6	3	8	5	1	0	74	40
Beerschot	2021–22	Belgian First Division A	26	5	2	0	—		—		28	5
	Total		26	5	2	0	—		—		28	5
Heart of Midlothian	2022–23 [68]	Scottish Premiership	37	24	1	1	1	0	8 [e]	3	47	28
	2023–24 [69]		37	24	3	2	3	2	4 [f]	3	47	31
	2024–25		19	3	0	0	1	0	7 [f]	0	27	3
	Total		93	51	4	3	5	2	19	6	121	62
Career total			367	170	22	13	25	18	32	9	446	210

1. Two appearances and one goal in the Scottish Challenge Cup; two appearances and a goal in the Second Division play-offs
2. Appearances in the Scottish Challenge Cup
3. Appearances in the Premiership play-offs
4. One appearance in the 2018–19 Scottish Challenge Cup, two appearances in the Premiership play-offs
5. Two appearances and one goal in the UEFA Europa League; six appearances and two goals in the UEFA Europa Conference League
6. Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa Conference League

International

As of match played on 18 November 2024 ^[70]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Scotland	2019	2	1
	2020	2	0
	2023	3	1
	2024	9	1
Total		16	3

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	13 October 2019	Hampden Park, Glasgow	San Marino	4–0	6–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
2	16 November 2023	Dinamo Arena, Tbilisi	Georgia	2–2	2–2	UEFA Euro 2024 qualification
3	7 June 2024	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Finland	2–0	2–2	Friendly

Honours

Ayr United

• Scottish League One: 2017–18 ^[71]

Dundee United

• Scottish Championship: 2019–20 ^[35]

Individual

• PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year: 2023–24 ^[72]
• Scottish Premiership top scorer: 2023–24
• PFA Scotland Team of the Year (Premiership): 2023–24
• SFWA Footballer of the Year: 2023–24 ^[73]
• PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year (League One): 2017–18 ^[22]
• Scottish Premiership Player of the Month: November 2023, ^[74] December 2023 ^[75]
• Scottish Championship Player of the Month: August 2018, ^[76] August 2019 ^[34]
• Scottish League One Player of the Month: November 2017, March 2018 ^[76]

References

1. A Record of Post-war Scottish League Players 1946/47 to 2017/18. 7. John Litster and Scottish Football Historian magazine. 2018.
2. "Erling Lawrance Shankland Overview". ESPN. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
3. Lawrence Shankland at Soccerway. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
4. "Lawrence Shankland interview". Aberdeen FC. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
5. "Shankland given opportunity at Aberdeen". www.spfl.co.uk. Scottish Professional Football League. 25 June 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
6. Roache, Ian (2 October 2019). "Sean Burns looks back to when 16-year-old Lawrence Shankland announced his arrival as goalscorer". The Courier. Dundee. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
7. Crawford, Kenny (5 July 2013). "Young Queen's Park trio make rare jump to SPL from Third Division". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
8. "Aberdeen sign former Rangers winger Gregg Wylde". BBC Sport. BBC. 24 June 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
9. "FT: Aberdeen 3 Inverness CT 2". www.afc.co.uk. Aberdeen FC. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
10. "Aberdeen: Adam Rooney & Niall McGinn sign new deals". BBC Sport. BBC. 22 December 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
11. "Aberdeen: Ash Taylor & Lawrence Shankland join players leaving Pittodrie". BBC Sport. BBC. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
12. "Aberdeen's Lawrence Shankland joins Dunfermline on loan". BBC Sport. BBC. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
13. "Cowdenbeath V Dunfermline at Central Park – Match Preview". CowdenbeathMad. FootyMad. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
14. "Loan Signing: Lawrence Shankland". www.saintmirren.net. St Mirren F.C. 26 August 2015. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
15. "St Mirren 1–2 Raith Rovers match report". BBC Sport. BBC. 18 September 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
16. "Squad Update". St Mirren Official website. Archived from the original on 5 June 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
17. "Loan Signing: Lawrence Shankland". St Mirren FC. 19 July 2016. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
18. Mitchell, Jonathan (11 January 2017). "Aberdeen striker Lawrence Shankland joins on loan". Greenock Morton FC. Archived from the original on 13 January 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
19. "Dundee United 3–0 Greenock Morton". BBC Sport. BBC. 12 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
20. "Ayr United sign former Aberdeen striker Lawrence Shankland as Ian McCall bids to boost side's League One title bid". Daily Record. 8 September 2017. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
21. "Scottish League One: Ayr strengthen grip on top spot, Forfar boost hopes". BBC Sport. 24 March 2018. Retrieved 24 March 2018.
22. "Scott Brown: Celtic captain voted PFA Scotland player of the year 2017/18". BBC Sport. 29 April 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
23. United, Ayr (14 July 2018). "GOOOAAAALLLL! | HAT-TRICK @Shankland_25. A cool chip over Ryan Scully.pic.twitter.com/RU3oPLS07a".
24. "League Cup: Partick Thistle 0-2 Ayr United, Morton 5-0 Albion Rovers". BBC Sport. 28 July 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
25. "Ayr United 4-1 Dunfermline Athletic". BBC Sport. 25 August 2018. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
26. "Dundee United 0-5 Ayr United". BBC Sport. 30 November 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
27. "Inverness CT 1-1 Ayr United (4-2 agg): hosts set up play-off semi-final meeting with Dundee United". BBC Sport. 11 May 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
28. "Player of the Year: Old Firm quartet vie for PFA Scotland top prize". BBC Sport. 5 May 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
29. "Kilmarnock's Steve Clarke and Celtic's James Forrest win PFA manager and player of the year awards". Press and Journal. 5 May 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
30. "United Announce Shankland Signing". Dundee United Football Club. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
31. "Dundee Utd confirm Lawrence Shankland signing as striker leaves Ayr Utd". BBC Sport. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
32. "Hearts 1–1 Dundee United". BBC. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
33. Lewis, Jane (3 August 2019). "Dundee United 4–1 Inverness Caledonian Thistle". BBC Sport. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
34. "Awards Double For Dundee United". Scottish Professional Football League. 10 September 2019. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
35. "Scottish Championship, League One and League Two seasons end after Dundee vote for SPFL resolution". BBC Sport . 16 April 2020. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
36. "Goal of the season? Watch Shankland's 53-yard wonder strike". BBC Sport. 12 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
37. "DUNDEE UNITED STRIKER LAWRENCE SHANKLAND SIGNS FOR BEERSCHOT". K Beerschot VA. 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
38. "LAWRENCE SHANKLAND DEPARTS FOR BEERSCHOT". Dundee United FC. 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
39. "Lawrence Shankland: Scotland striker joins Hearts from Beerschot". BBC Sport. 20 July 2022. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
40. "Hibernian 1-1 Hearts: Martin Boyle marks Easter Road return with late Edinburgh derby equaliser". Sky Sports. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
41. Meikle, Blair (29 December 2022). "Lawrence Shankland Hearts captain for season as Robbie Neilson explains decision". Football Scotland. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
42. Galindo, Alan (23 January 2023). "Hearts star Lawrence Shankland tipped for 30 goals after breaking 20-goal mark". EdinburghLive. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
43. "Lawrence Shankland backs himself to keep scoring after hitting 50th Hearts goal". The National. 9 February 2024. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
44. "Scotland Under 18s 2012 Photo Gallery". Scottish FA. The Scottish Schools' Football Association 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
45. "Lawrence Shankland". www.scottishfa.co.uk. Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
46. "Lawrence Shankland: Scotland call-up for Dundee United striker". BBC Sport. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
47. Forsyth, Roddy (10 October 2019). "Sorry Scotland thrashed by Russia to leave Nations League as their only Euro 2020 hope". The Telegraph. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
48. "Queen's Park share nostalgic snap of Robertson and Shankland as teammates after Scotland call-up". Glasgow Times. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
49. Lamont, Alasdair (13 October 2019). "Scotland 6–0 San Marino". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
50. "Scotland call up for Lawrence Shankland as Che Adams & Anthony Ralston drop out". BBC Sport. 26 March 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
51. McPheat, Nick (16 November 2023). "Georgia 2-2 Scotland: Should Lawrence Shankland be on the plane to Germany next summer?". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
52. "Netherlands 4 Scotland 0: Steve Clarke's men suffer mauling in Euro 2024 warm-up game". Herald Scotland. 23 March 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
53. "Record-breaking goalkeeper Gordon out of Scotland's Euro 2024 squad". Reuters. 7 June 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
54. "Ruthless Germany humble 10-man Scotland in Euro 2024 opener". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
55. "Scotland 1-1 Switzerland: Clarke's men keep Group A hopes alive". UEFA. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
56. "Scotland vs Hungary: Line-ups". UEFA. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
57. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
58. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
59. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
60. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
61. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
62. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
63. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
64. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
65. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
66. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
67. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
68. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
69. "Games played by Lawrence Shankland in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
70. Lawrence Shankland at the Scottish Football Association
71. "Scottish League One: Ayr United pip Raith Rovers to title and automatic promotion". BBC Sport. 28 April 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
72. "Lawrence Shankland, David Watson & Rangers trio win PFA awards". BBC Sport. 5 May 2024. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
73. "Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland named SFWA Player of the Year". scottishfwa.com. SFWA. 17 May 2024. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
74. "Shankland nets November award | SPFL". spfl.co.uk. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
75. "Shankland voted Player of the Month | SPFL". spfl.co.uk. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
76. "SPFL monthly awards". www.spfl.co.uk. Scottish Professional Football League. 28 May 2014. Archived from the original on 14 June 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2018.

External links

• Lawrence Shankland at Soccerbase
• Lawrence Shankland at Soccerway
• Lawrence Shankland at the Scottish Football Association
• Profile and stats at AFC Heritage Trust