Connor Michael Smith (born 18 February 1993) is an Irish 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 lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. He is currently assistant manager of

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

side Barnet.

Career

Born in Ireland, Smith came to prominence in 2010, finishing as runner-up to

Ben Greenhalgh Ben James Greenhalgh (born 16 April 1992) is an English association football, football player and coach who is player-manager of Margate F.C., Margate, where he plays as a midfielder or Forward (association football), striker. He is noted for ...

on the television show '' Football's Next Star''. He joined the academy setup at

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

later that year in May, signing a two-year apprenticeship. In November 2011, Smith joined

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional Association football, football league covering Greater London, East of England, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, th ...

side

Wealdstone Wealdstone () is a district located in the centre of the London Borough of Harrow, England. It is located just north of Harrow, London, Harrow town centre and is south of Harrow Weald, west of Belmont, Harrow, Belmont and Kenton, London, Kenton, ...

on loan until January 2012, along with

Britt Assombalonga Britt Curtis Assombalonga (born 6 December 1992) is a Congolese professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward for DR Congo national football team. He has played in the English Football Lea ...

. In January, the loan was extended for a further two months after the club had remained unbeaten. Smith signed his first professional contract with Watford in May 2012. His professional debut for Watford came on 18 August 2012, in a 3–2 victory over

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

in the

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, i ...

, replacing Sean Murray as a substitute. On 8 January 2014, Smith signed on loan for Gillingham until the end of the 2013–14 season. On 1 September 2015, Smith signed for League Two side

Stevenage Stevenage ( ) is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevenage w ...

on an initial month loan. Smith left Watford on 21 January 2016 after his contract was cancelled by mutual consent. The next day Smith signed a permanent contract with

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...

. Despite only playing 11 games for the Dons, Smith joined

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club has played ...

. He scored his first goal for Plymouth in an

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Motors, Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football, football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and ...

tie against former club AFC Wimbledon on 4 October 2016. Having helped Plymouth Argyle to achieve promotion to League One, Smith was released at the end of the 2016–17 season. Following his release by Plymouth, Smith signed for League Two side Yeovil Town on a two-year contract. On 5 July 2018, Smith's contract with Yeovil Town was terminated by mutual consent. On 6 July 2018, Smith signed for

side Boreham Wood. On 4 January 2019, Smith signed for Billericay Town on an 18-month contract. Smith then signed for

for a second time ahead of the 2019–2020 season. Smith was part of the Wealdstone side who won promotion to the

in 2019-20. Smith's first goal in his second stint at the Stones came on 2 March 2021, against his former side Boreham Wood in a 1–0 victory. On 4 June 2021 it was announced that Smith had left the club. In June 2021, Smith returned to Boreham Wood to take on a player/first team coach role. On 12 July 2022, Smith signed for Barnet on a two-year contract. Following the departure of John Dreyer, he became assistant manager at the Bees.

Career statistics

Honours

AFC Wimbledon *

Football League Two play-offs The EFL League Two play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the association football teams finishing from fourth to seventh in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are part of the annual Engli ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Wealdstone *

National League South The National League South, officially Vanarama National League South, is a professional Association football league in England. National League South is the second division of the National League (English football), National Leagues and step ...

: 2019-20

References

External links

*
Ireland stats
at UEFA * {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Connor 1993 births Living people Sportspeople from Mullingar Association footballers from County Westmeath Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Men's association football midfielders Watford F.C. players Wealdstone F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players Stevenage F.C. players AFC Wimbledon players Plymouth Argyle F.C. players Yeovil Town F.C. players Boreham Wood F.C. players Billericay Town F.C. players Kingstonian F.C. players Kings Langley F.C. players Barnet F.C. players Barnet F.C. non-playing staff English Football League players Isthmian League players National League (English football) players Southern Football League players Irish expatriate sportspeople in England 21st-century Irish sportsmen