Phil Smith (footballer, Born 1979)
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Philip Anthony Smith (born 14 December 1979) is an English professional
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 plays as a
goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...
for
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 ...
club
Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary district, in the county of Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. Its population ...
.


Career


Millwall and non-League football

Born in
Harrow Harrow may refer to: Places * Harrow, Victoria, Australia * Harrow, Ontario, Canada * The Harrow, County Wexford, a village in Ireland * London Borough of Harrow, England * Harrow, London, a town in London * Harrow (UK Parliament constituency) * ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, Smith started his career with
Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...
for whom he played 5 league matches in the 1998–1999 season. He remained on Millwalls books until 2001 without making any further appearances but was loaned to
non-league Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...
clubs
Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...
, Ashford Town,
Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...
and Walton & Hersham. Whilst at Walton & Hersham Smith scored a (wind-assisted) goal against Barton Rovers. On his release from Millwall in 2001 he reverted to non-league football, briefly with
Folkestone Invicta Folkestone Invicta Football Club is a football club based in Folkestone, Kent, England. They are currently members of the and play at Cheriton Road. History The club was established in 1936 and joined the East Kent Wednesday League for the 1 ...
and then with
Dover Athletic Dover Athletic Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in the town of Dover, Kent, England. The club currently competes in the , the sixth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1983 afte ...
.


Margate

Commencing in July 2002 Smith played at
Football Conference The National League of English Football Clubs is a professional Association football, football league in England that consists of 72 teams, divided equally between the National League (division), National League North and National League South ...
club
Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Thanet District of Kent, England. It is located on the north coast of Kent and covers an area of long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and W ...
for two seasons playing a total of 64 league matches. In his second season he was ever-present in the team playing a total of 55 competitive matches.


Crawley Town

In July 2004 Smith signed for
Crawley Town Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1896 as Crawley Foo ...
, where he was regular first choice goalkeeper for the Red Devils. He made his debut on 30 August 2004, against
Dagenham & Redbridge Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club (), often known simply as Dagenham and abbreviated when written to Dag & Red, is a professional association football club based in Dagenham, Greater London, England that play in the , the sixth level of the En ...
, and kept a clean sheet. In his first season, Smith made 35 appearances, followed by 39 in his second. Crawley went into administration in 2006 and subsequently made all of their players available for transfer.


Swindon Town

Smith signed for
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...
after a successful pre-season trial which included winning the Copa Ibiza friendly competition in the summer of 2006. Smith move to Swindon was partly helped by then Swindon manager
Dennis Wise Dennis Frank Wise (born 16 December 1966) is an English former professional football player and manager who played as a central midfielder. He spent the majority of his career at Chelsea, from 1990 to 2001. Beginning his career at Wimbledon, ...
knowing Smith from his spell at Millwall when Wise was first team manager. Smith was initially signed as backup to first choice goalkeeper Peter Brezovan and handed the #25 jersey for the 2006–07 season. After Brezovan suffered a broken arm in a home game against
Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...
on 14 October 2006, Smith took over in goal after an unsuccessful two game loan spell from
Andrew Lonergan Andrew Michael Lonergan (born 19 October 1983) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Lonergan is a former England national under-21 football team, England U21 i ...
(loaned from
Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...
). He picked up the PFA Fans Player of the Month for December 2006. This award was presented to him on 27 January 2007, before the home game against
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an association football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England. Initially known as Macclesfield F.C., the club was formed in 1874 and from 1891 played home games at Moss Rose. It competed in the short ...
, after a string of solid displays kept Swindon in the automatic promotion places. Smith was also rewarded for his efforts, with a two-year contract extension. His consistent displays between the sticks during the season did not go unnoticed by the fans, who named him Swindon's 'Fans Player of the Season' in May 2007. In the following season, Smith granted his place as a first choice keeper and received the #1 jersey, where he continued to impress then manager
Paul Sturrock Paul Whitehead Sturrock (born 10 October 1956) is a Scottish former football coach and former player. As a player, Sturrock spent his entire senior career with Dundee United, making more than five hundred appearances between 1974 and 1989. He w ...
. He performed well in the opening match of the 2007–08 season away to
Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...
, where Swindon drew 1–1. He continued his outstanding performances, remaining first choice, keeping his first clean sheet of the season in the 5–0 thrashing of Gillingham at The County Ground. The arrival of
Maurice Malpas Maurice Daniel Robert Malpas (born 3 August 1962) is a Scottish former football player and coach. He signed for Dundee United in 1979 and spent his entire professional playing career with the club until his retirement in 2000. With him, United ...
as manager midway through the season saw the first choice goalkeeping position up for grabs, with neither Smith or other Swindon goalkeeper Peter Brezovan able to hold down the position on a regular basis. Smith played 25 games in the 2008–09 season, in which Swindon were involved in a relegation battle for much of the campaign. During the pre-season of 2009/2010 season, new Swindon manager Danny Wilson brought in experienced goalkeeper David Lucas and handed him the #1 jersey. Smith was handed the #12 jersey. He did not feature on a regular basis, but when called upon, put in some good displays, including an outstanding game against
Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third level of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...
on 6 October 2009 in the
Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...
and a man of the match display in the League One Playoff Semi-Final Second Leg against
Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...
, after David Lucas was forced off with injury after just 2 minutes. Swindon won the tie after a penalty shoot-out victory. On 25 February 2010, Smith agreed a new contract extension with the club until the summer of 2012. He began the 2010–11 season as backup to David Lucas. However, injuries and a poor form from Lucas allowed Smith to make 27 appearances during the season. The season ultimately lead to a 24th-place finish and relegation to League Two. Smith was second choice keeper after
Wes Foderingham Wesley Andrew Foderingham (born 14 January 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club West Ham United. He is a former England U19 international. Foderingham was with Fulham and Crystal Palace as a young ...
at Swindon in the 2011–12 season, after the arrival of
Paolo Di Canio Paolo Di Canio (born 9 July 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer and manager. During his playing career he made over 500 league appearances and scored over one hundred goals as a Forward (association football), forward. He primari ...
as new manager, but ahead of third choice Italian goalkeeper
Mattia Lanzano Mattia Lanzano (born 4 July 1990) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper. Club career Early career Lanzano began his professional career with Piacenza Calcio, but did not make an appearance for the ''Biancorossi'' duri ...
. On 18 May 2012, Smith was released by Swindon after over 6 years playing for the club. Until his departure, Smith was the longest serving player in the Swindon Town squad, having served the club from 2006 until 2012.


Portsmouth

On 7 December 2012, Smith signed a one-month contract with
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...
, initially as a backup for
Simon Eastwood Simon Christopher Eastwood (born 26 June 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Oxford United. Eastwood started his career as a youth player with Huddersfield Town. He went professional in 2007, but stru ...
. Smith's first public game in a Portsmouth shirt came in a fundraising friendly at
Fratton Park Fratton Park is a association football, football ground in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and is the home of Portsmouth F.C., Portsmouth Football Club. Fratton Park's location on Portsea Island is unique in English professional football, as it ...
against ÍBV Vestmannaeyjar managed by former Portsmouth legend
Hermann Hreidarsson Hermann or Herrmann may refer to: * Hermann (name), list of people with this name * Arminius, chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe in the 1st century, known as Hermann in the German language * Éditions Hermann, French publisher * Hermann, Mis ...
. On 8 May 2013, he signed a one-year contract extension with Pompey. Smith made his Pompey debut on 6 August, in a
Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...
match against
AFC Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth ( ) is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. ...
. After an impressive performance he went on to play 3 league games, before making a mistake in a 2–2 draw away to Mansfield. He now plays in the Development Squad and is a second choice keeper behind
Trevor Carson Trevor Carson (born 5 March 1988) is a Northern Irish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Dundee. Born in Killyleagh, Northern Ireland, Carson started his youth career with Killyleagh Boys before moving to Sunderland in 2 ...
. In November 2013, Smith joined
Conference Premier The National League, officially known as Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in England. The National League is the first division of the National Leagues and step 1 of the National Le ...
side
Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames Estuary, is Thurrock in ...
on a one-month loan deal. He was released by Portsmouth at the end of the season.


Aldershot Town

Following his release by Portsmouth, Smith signed for Conference side
Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spr ...
.


Career statistics


Honours

Swindon Town *
Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, officially known as the Vertu Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL League Two and U-21 teams from the Premier Le ...
runner-up: 2011–12


References


External links

* *
Phil Smith biography
Margate Football Club History {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Phil 1979 births Living people Footballers from the London Borough of Harrow People from Harrow, London English men's footballers England men's semi-pro international footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Millwall F.C. players Bromley F.C. players Ashford United F.C. players Croydon F.C. players Walton & Hersham F.C. players Folkestone Invicta F.C. players Dover Athletic F.C. players Margate F.C. players Crawley Town F.C. players Swindon Town F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Dartford F.C. players Aldershot Town F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players National League (English football) players