Brian Smith (born 27 October 1966) is a former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a defender. Born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, England, he spent all but a short loan spell with his home town club

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

Career

Smith initially signed with

as a YTS trainee in 1983 before turning professional in 1984. Smith made semi-regular appearances for United from that point on, initially deployed as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

but later as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

and then more regularly as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. Following a brief loan spell with

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The tea ...

in 1987, Smith had established himself in United's first team by the 1988–89 season as they were promoted to Division Two, but he broke his leg just prior to the end of the season during a home game against

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

. Having been hit by a serious injury, his leg broken in three places, Smith struggled to regain fitness and succumbed to a further stress fracture when he recommenced training and then a number of infections and complications, and he was eventually forced to retire without ever playing for the United first team again.

Personal life

Born in

, England, Smith was the younger brother of fellow footballer Paul Smith, who played alongside him for

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Brian 1966 births Footballers from Sheffield English footballers Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Sheffield United F.C. players Scunthorpe United F.C. players English Football League players Living people