Adam Smith (footballer, born 1992)

For other people named Adam Smith, see Adam Smith (disambiguation).

Adam Smith

Personal information
Full name	Adam Clifford Smith [1]
Date of birth	(1992-11-23) 23 November 1992 (age 32)
Place of birth	Sunderland, England
Height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) [2]
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team	Hartlepool United
Number	41
Youth career
	Middlesbrough
2010–2011	Leicester City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011–2015	Leicester City	0	(0)
2011	→ Chesterfield (loan)	0	(0)
2012	→ Lincoln City (loan)	0	(0)
2012	→ Nuneaton Town (loan)	7	(0)
2014	→ Stevenage (loan)	0	(0)
2014	→ Cambridge United (loan)	1	(0)
2015	→ Mansfield Town (loan)	4	(0)
2015–2017	Northampton Town	86	(0)
2017–2019	Bristol Rovers	28	(0)
2019–2021	Forest Green Rovers	8	(0)
2019	→ Yeovil Town (loan)	5	(0)
2020	→ Yeovil Town (loan)	0	(0)
2020–2021	→ Yeovil Town (loan)	42	(0)
2021–2022	Stevenage	9	(0)
2022–2024	Morecambe	16	(0)
2024–	Hartlepool United	7	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:34, 15 December 2024 (UTC)

Adam Clifford Smith (born 23 November 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for National League club Hartlepool United. He is also the goalkeeping coach at Hartlepool.

Career

Early career

Born in Sunderland, Smith joined Leicester City from Middlesbrough in 2010.

Early loan moves

On 16 September 2011 he was loaned to Chesterfield, ^[3] but was only a backup to Greg Fleming during his spell.

In early January 2012 Smith joined Conference Premier club Lincoln City on loan, again as cover, until the end of the season. ^[4]

On 25 October 2012, Smith signed for another Conference side in Nuneaton Town, on an initial one-month loan. ^[5] Smith made his senior debut on 27 October in a 1–1 draw with Barrow, and went on to appear in seven games for the club.

On 11 January 2014 Smith was loaned to Football League One club Stevenage, in a one-month deal to provide cover following injuries to senior goalkeepers. ^[6]

Cambridge United (loan)

On 25 April 2014, Smith moved to Conference Premier side Cambridge United on an emergency loan, following injuries to all of the club's senior goalkeepers. ^[7] Smith made his debut the next day, in a 2–0 defeat to Gateshead on the final day of the League season. ^[8] With Cambridge having already qualified for the 2013–14 Conference play-offs, Smith starred as Cambridge defeated FC Halifax Town 2–1 over two legs, Cambridge being 1–0 down after the first leg, to send the U's to Wembley and a chance at promotion to the Football League. ^[9] On 18 May 2014, Smith played the full match as Cambridge defeated Gateshead 2–1 in the 2014 Conference play-off final, to earn promotion to League Two. ^[10]

Return to Leicester

On 27 June 2014 he signed a new two-year deal with Leicester. ^[11] Following an injury to first-choice goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, Smith was on the substitutes bench for nine Premier League games during the first half of the 2014–15 season as cover for Ben Hamer, as well as featuring for the Leicester City U21s, keeping a clean sheet against Schalke in the Premier League International Cup. ^[12]

Mansfield Town (loan)

On 9 January 2015, Smith moved on a one-month loan to League Two club Mansfield Town after Leicester's signing of Mark Schwarzer moved Smith back down to third choice. ^[13] The following day, Smith made his Football League debut, starting in a 2–1 away loss against Burton Albion in which he came up against fellow Leicester City loanee Jacob Blyth. ^[14]

Northampton Town

On 26 June 2015, Smith signed a two-year deal with League Two club Northampton Town. ^[15] In his first season with The Cobblers, Smith made The Football League Team of the Season and PFA Team of the Year ^[16] – as well as winning promotion to League One. He made 94 appearances in all competitions for Northampton.

Bristol Rovers

On 6 July 2017, Smith signed for League One club Bristol Rovers after leaving Northampton Town at the end of the season. ^[17] He made his debut in a 1–0 away defeat to Charlton Athletic on 5 August 2017. He looked to have made an amazing save from a Patrick Bauer header tipping it onto the post, however the linesman and the referee judged that the ball had crossed the line. ^[18]

He was released by Bristol Rovers at the end of the 2018–19 season. ^[19]

Forest Green Rovers

Following his release from Bristol Rovers, Smith signed a two-year deal with Forest Green Rovers on 25 June 2019, active from 1 July 2019. ^[20]

On 23 September 2019, Smith joined National League side Yeovil Town on a one-month loan deal. ^[21] On 6 March 2020, Smith rejoined Yeovil on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season. ^[22]

On 15 August 2020, Smith signed returned to Yeovil Town for a third loan spell on loan until the end of the 2020–21 season. ^[23]

Stevenage

Smith signed for League Two club Stevenage on a short-term contract on 23 October 2021. ^[24] He made his debut on the same day as his signing was announced, keeping a clean sheet in Stevenage's 0–0 draw with Leyton Orient. ^[25]

On 22 January 2022, Stevenage confirmed that Smith had left the club. ^[26]

Morecambe

On 4 February 2022, Smith joined League One side Morecambe on a short-term contract until the end of the 2021–22 season. ^[27]

Although having initially departed the club following relegation at the end of the 2022–23 season, ^[28] he signed a new one-year deal on 20 June 2023. ^[29]

Hartlepool United

On 3 August 2024, he signed for National League side Hartlepool United on a short-term contract. ^[30] After starting the season as the second choice goalkeeper behind Joel Dixon, he made his debut on 31 August in a match against Braintree Town after Dixon had suffered a first half injury, keeping a clean sheet in a 0–0 draw. ^[31] On 7 October 2024, Smith was announced as Hartlepool's new goalkeeping coach. ^[32]

Personal life

In May 2015, Smith and teammates James Pearson and Tom Hopper made a sex tape with local women on Leicester's tour of Thailand, which was obtained by the Sunday Mirror . The three players apologised for making the video, which included a racial epithet towards the women. ^[33] However, the trio were sacked by the club on 17 June 2015. ^[34]

Career statistics

As of match played 14 December 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		EFL Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Leicester City	2010–11 [35]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2011–12 [36]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2012–13 [37]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2013–14 [38]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2014–15 [39]	Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Chesterfield (loan)	2011–12 [36]	League One	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lincoln City (loan)	2011–12 [40]	Conference Premier	0	0	0	0	—		0	0	0	0
Nuneaton Town (loan)	2012–13 [40]	Conference Premier	7	0	0	0	—		1 [a]	0	8	0
Stevenage (loan)	2013–14 [38]	League One	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Cambridge United (loan)	2013–14 [38]	Conference Premier	1	0	0	0	—		3 [b]	0	4	0
Mansfield Town (loan)	2014–15 [39]	League Two	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
Northampton Town	2015–16 [41]	League Two	46	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	50	0
	2016–17 [42]	League One	40	0	1	0	3	0	0	0	44	0
	Total		86	0	5	0	3	0	0	0	94	0
Bristol Rovers	2017–18 [43]	League One	23	0	1	0	1	0	1 [c]	0	26	0
	2018–19 [44]	League One	5	0	2	0	2	0	1 [c]	0	10	0
	Total		28	0	3	0	3	0	2	0	36	0
Forest Green Rovers	2019–20 [45]	League Two	8	0	1	0	0	0	1 [c]	0	10	0
	2020–21 [46]	League Two	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		8	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	10	0
Yeovil Town (loan)	2019–20 [45]	National League	5	0	0	0	—		0	0	5	0
	2020–21 [46]	National League	42	0	3	0	—		0	0	45	0
	Total		47	0	3	0	—		0	0	50	0
Stevenage	2021–22 [47]	League Two	9	0	2	0	0	0	1 [c]	0	12	0
Morecambe	2021–22 [47]	League One	1	0	—		—		—		1	0
	2022–23 [48]	League One	1	0	0	0	0	0	4 [c]	0	5	0
	2023–24 [49]	League Two	14	0	3	0	0	0	3 [c]	0	20	0
	Total		16	0	3	0	0	0	7	0	26	0
Hartlepool United	2024–25 [40]	National League	7	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	8	0
Career total			213	0	17	0	6	0	16	0	252	0

1. Appearance in FA Trophy
2. Appearances in Conference Premier play-offs
3. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

Honours

Cambridge United

• Conference Premier play-offs: 2014 ^[50]

Northampton Town

• Football League Two: 2015–16 ^[51]

Individual

• The Football League Team of the Season: 2015–16 ^[52]
• PFA Team of the Year: 2015–16 League Two ^[16]

References

1. "List of Players under Written Contract Registered Between 01/01/2014 and 31/01/2014" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 8. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
2. "Adam Smith". Morecambe F.C. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
3. "Chesterfield sign Leicester City keeper Adam Smith". BBC Sport. 16 September 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
4. "Lincoln City complete signing of left winger Conal Platt". BBC Sport. 6 January 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
5. "Leicester City keeper Adam Smith joins Nuneaton on loan". BBC Sport. 25 October 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
6. "Stevenage Loan For Stopper Smith". Leicester City FC. 11 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
7. "Adam Smith joins United". Cambridge United FC. 25 April 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
8. "Gateshead 2–0 Cambridge United". BBC Sport. 26 April 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
9. "Cambridge United 2–0 FC Halifax". BBC Sport. 4 May 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
10. "Cambridge United 2–1 Gateshead". BBC Sport. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
11. "Development Trio Sign Contract Extensions". Leicester City FC. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
12. "U21 Report: Leicester City 2 Schalke 0". Leicester City FC. 18 November 2014. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
13. "Adam Smith: Mansfield Town sign Leicester City keeper". BBC Sport. 9 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
14. "Burton 2–1 Mansfield". BBC Sport. 10 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
15. "Adam Smith: Northampton Town sign sacked Leicester City keeper". BBC Sport. 26 June 2015. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
16. "PFA awards: Leicester and Spurs dominate Premier League team". BBC Sport. 21 April 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
17. "Rovers Sign Goalkeepers Adam Smith and Sam Slocombe". Bristol Rovers F.C. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
18. "Rovers Suffer Opening Day Defeat at Charlton". Bristol Rovers F.C. 5 August 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
19. "Bristol Rovers: Chris Lines heads list of nine players to leave League One club". BBC Sport. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
20. "Adam Smith and James Morton: Forest Green bring in duo". BBC Sport. 25 June 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
21. "Stopper Smith signs". Yeovil Town F.C. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
22. "Signing | Shotstopper Smith returns". Yeovil Town F.C. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
23. "Transfer | Shotstopper Smith secured". Yeovil Town F.C. 15 August 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
24. "Adam Smith signs for Stevenage". Stevenage F.C. 23 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
25. "Stevenage 0–0 Leyton Orient". BBC Sport. 23 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
26. "Adam Smith leaves Stevenage". Stevenage FC. 22 January 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
27. "Smith joins the Shrimps". Morecambe FC. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
28. "Retained List announced". www.morecambefc.com. 8 May 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
29. "Adam Smith re-signs for Shrimps". www.morecambefc.com. 20 June 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
30. "Adam Smith signs for Pools". Hartlepool United. 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
31. Stelling, Robbie (1 September 2024). "Hartlepool United goalkeeper Adam Smith hails defensive effort after keeping clean sheet on competitive debut against Braintree". Hartlepool Mail. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
32. "Paul Woolston departs the Club". Hartlepool United FC. 7 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
33. "Leicester City trio apologise for behaviour on Thailand tour". BBC News. 31 May 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
34. "Leicester City: Three players sacked over racist sex tape". BBC News. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
35. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
36. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
37. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
38. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
39. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
40. Adam Smith at Soccerway. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
41. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
42. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
43. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
44. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
45. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
46. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
47. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
48. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
49. "Games played by Adam Smith in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
50. McVeigh, Niall (18 May 2014). "Conference play-off final: Cambridge United 2–1 Gateshead - as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
51. "League Two: 2015/16". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
    "Northampton FC Player Appearances". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
52. "The Football League Awards 2016: Winners". EFL.com. 17 April 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2022.

External links

• Adam Smith at Soccerbase
• Adam Smith at Soccerway