Ex-Hearts starlet returns to Scottish football and joins Dunfermline Athletic

Leon Jones has joined Dunfermline Athletic. Picture: SNS

The 23-year-old has signed a one-year-deal at East End Park, becoming Peter Grant’s tenth signing this summer.

A centre-back, Jones career trajectory is not the familiar one having returned from America after completing a four-year chemical engineering course at the University of Kentucky.

He had been at Hearts from the age of seven until 19. Having captained the club's Under-20s on numerous occasions he opted against signing a one-year deal offered by Craig Levein to move stateside on a scholarship in 2017.

Jones enjoyed on-field success with the Kentucky Wildcats, winning a league and cup double in 2019.

As revealed by the Evening News in May, the player was keen for a return to Scotland, while he has his eyes on an international call-up, qualifying for both China and Hong Kong through his mother. The former are currently managed by ex-Hibs boss Mixu Paatelainen.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our sports coverage with a digital sports subscription.