Alan Forrest

For the American silent film actor, see Allan Forrest.

Alan James Forrest (born 9 September 1996) is a Scottish footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Scottish Premiership club Heart of Midlothian.^[1] He began his career at Ayr United, coming through the academy and making 245 appearances for The Honest Men. He would then spend two seasons with Scottish Premiership side Livingston.

Alan Forrest

Personal information
Full name	Alan James Forrest
Date of birth	(1996-09-09) 9 September 1996 (age 28)
Place of birth	Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Attacking Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Heart of Midlothian
Number	17
Youth career
	Ayr United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2020	Ayr United	197	(48)
2020–2022	Livingston	62	(9)
2022–	Heart of Midlothian	96	(12)
International career‡
2016	Scotland U21	1	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 May 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 4 March 2019

He is the younger brother of Celtic and Scotland winger James Forrest;^[2] their sister Lisa is also a footballer.^[3][4]

Club career

Ayr United

Forrest made his debut for Ayr United in a Scottish Challenge Cup match against Queen's Park. He came off the bench to score an 89th-minute winner at Hampden Park. With this goal Forrest became Ayr's youngest ever goalscorer aged 16 years, 321 days.^[2]

During the 2019–20 Scottish Championship season, Forrest was awarded the Scottish Championship Player of the Month for September after scoring five goals in three league games.^[5]

Livingston

Forrest signed a pre-contract deal with Livingston on 10 April 2020, making the jump from the Scottish Championship to the Scottish Premiership.^[6] Forrest made his debut for Livingston on the opening day of the 2020–21 Scottish Premiership season in a 1–0 loss against St Mirren at St Mirren Park. He scored his first goal for Livingston in a 2–2 draw against Motherwell on 12 August 2020, at Fir Park.^[7]

Heart of Midlothian

On 1 June 2022, it was announced that Forrest would join Scottish Premiership side Heart of Midlothian on a two-year deal, following the expiry of his Livingston contract on 10 June.^[8][9] On 19 January 2024, he signed a two-year extension to his contract until 2026.^[10]

International career

In 2016, Forrest made his debut for the Scotland under-21 team in a friendly against Slovakia.^[11][12]

Career statistics

As of 19 May 2025^[13]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Scottish Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Ayr United	2013–14	Scottish League One	27	8	2	0	1	0	4[a]	1	34	9
	2014–15		31	9	2	0	2	0	1[b]	0	36	9
	2015–16		34	5	1	0	2	0	2[c]	0	39	5
	2016–17	Scottish Championship	34	6	6	0	2	2	3[b]	1	45	9
	2017–18	Scottish League One	29	7	2	1	1	0	2[b]	1	34	9
	2018–19	Scottish Championship	17	3	0	0	6	1	2[d]	0	25	4
	2019–20		25	10	2	0	4	0	1[b]	0	32	10
	Total		197	48	15	1	18	3	15	3	245	55
Livingston	2020–21	Scottish Premiership	30	4	2	0	7	7	0	0	39	11
	2021–22		32	5	2	0	3	1	0	0	37	6
	Total		62	9	4	0	10	8	0	0	76	17
Heart of Midlothian	2022–23	Scottish Premiership	35	4	3	0	1	0	8	1	47	5
	2023–24		31	4	4	0	1	0	2	0	38	4
	2024–25	Scottish Premiership	30	4	3	0	1	0	7	1	41	5
	Total		96	12	10	0	3	0	17	2	126	14
Career total			354	69	29	1	31	11	32	5	446	86

1. Two appearances and one goal in the Scottish Challenge Cup; Two appearances in the Scottish Championship play-offs
2. Appearances in the Scottish Challenge Cup
3. One appearance in the Scottish Challenge Cup; One appearance in the Scottish Championship play-offs
4. One appearance in the Scottish Challenge Cup; One appearance in the Scottish Premiership play-offs

Honours

Club

Ayr United

• Scottish League One: 2017–18^[14]
• Scottish Championship Play-Offs: 2015-16^[15]

Individual

• Scottish Championship Player of the Month: September 2019^[5]
• Scottish Premiership Player of the Month: January 2024.