Barry Smith (footballer, born 1974)

Barry Smith

Alloa chairman Mike Mulraney shakes hands with new Alloa manager Barry Smith (right)
Personal information
Full name	Barry Martin Smith
Date of birth	(1974-02-19) 19 February 1974
Place of birth	Paisley, Scotland
Height
Position(s)	Defender
Team information
Current team	Aldershot Town (manager)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1991–1995	Celtic	22	(0)
1995–2006	Dundee	400	(3)
2006–2008	Valur	41	(1)
2007	→ Partick Thistle (loan)	18	(1)
2008	→ Greenock Morton (loan)	5	(0)
International career‡
1992	Scotland under-21	5	(0)
Managerial career
2010–2013	Dundee
2014–2015	Alloa Athletic
2015–	Aldershot Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:49, 7 May 2010 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13:47, 19 September 2006 (UTC)

Barry Smith (born 19 February 1974 in Paisley) is a Scottish football player and manager. Smith played in the right back, centre back, and defensive midfielder roles for Celtic, Dundee, Valur, Partick Thistle, Greenock Morton and Brechin City before entering management with Dundee. He was most recently the manager of Alloa Athletic.

Smith combined his playing duties while on loan at Brechin City with managing the Dundee U-19 side before taking on the role of first team manager following the departure of previous manager Gordon Chisholm who was made redundant when the club went into administration in October 2010. Already admitted into Dundee's Hall of Fame for making 400 appearances, scoring three goals and captaining the side from 1997 until 2006, Smith's status as a club legend was cemented when he led the team to a club record 23-game unbeaten streak in the league.

Club career

Celtic

Smith began his career with Scottish Premier League side Celtic. He made his début aged 17 and played 22 games, including two Old Firm matches, between 1991 and 1995.

Dundee

Smith never gained a regular place at Celtic Park and joined fellow Scottish side Dundee in August 1995. He quickly established himself in the team at right-back and was made club captain in 1997, the same year Dundee achieved promotion to the Premier Division. After playing with the Dens Park side for ten-and-a-half seasons, Smith reached his testimonial year. He also took on the role of joint caretaker manager (with Bobby Mann) for the final two games of the 2005–2006 season following the dismissal of Alan Kernaghan.

Valur

At the end of the 2005–2006 season, Smith transferred to Icelandic outfit Valur, helping them to third place (in 2006) and winning (in 2007) the Icelandic Premier Division, their first championship in 20 years.

Partick Thistle and Greenock Morton

During the Icelandic close season, Smith was loaned back to Scottish clubs. In January 2007, he joined Partick Thistle, making 18 appearances and scoring one goal, while in January 2008 he joined Greenock Morton, making 5 appearances until he underwent a cartilage operation which kept him out for the rest of the season.

Return to Dundee

On 4 November 2008, Smith returned to Dundee as U19 coach, with his registration as a player following in January, whereupon he was loaned out to neighbours Brechin City, with the ability to be recalled at any time. Brechin City's status as a part-time team enabled Smith to continue in his role as U19 Coach at Dens Park.

Managerial career

On 15 October 2010, Smith was appointed manager of Dundee. He succeeded Gordon Chisholm, who had been made redundant after the club entered administration. Smith led the team to a club record unbeaten league streak of 23 games, guiding Dundee to safety despite the team receiving a 25-point deduction for entering administration for the second time in seven years (confirmed after a 0–1 win away to Ross County). This was rewarded, on 10 May 2011, when Smith signed a new three-year deal at Dundee, contracting him as manager until the end of the 2013–14 season.

Despite finishing second in the 2011–12 Scottish First Division, Dundee were admitted to the Scottish Premier League due to the liquidation of Rangers. Dundee struggled in the early part of the 2012–13 Scottish Premier League, winning three out of 22 matches. Despite this, the Dundee board restated their backing for Smith, citing the difficulty in adjusting to the SPL in unusual circumstances. However, just 47 days later, Smith and Dundee parted company. His sacking was criticised by St. Johnstone manager Steve Lomas, believing Smith deserved another chance.

On 1 July 2013, Smith joined Ross County as the club's Under-20s coach. In January 2014, Smith was appointed manager of Scottish Championship club Alloa Athletic. He guided Alloa to the final of the 2014–15 Scottish Challenge Cup. Alloa defeated Rangers in the semi-final, with Smith noting the fact he had become the first Alloa manager to win a match against Rangers. Smith said in December 2014 that he hoped to return to a full-time management job. After a run of one win in 13 matches, he resigned as Alloa manager in March 2015.

Honours

As a player

Dundee

• Scottish Football League First Division:
  • Winner: 1997–98

Valur

• Icelandic Premier Division: 2007

Individual

• Scottish Football League First Division Manager of the Month (3): November 2010, December 2010, February 2011
• Dundee's Hall of Fame: 3 April 2009

Managerial statistics

As of 24 October 2015

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	Win %
Dundee		15 October 2010	20 February 2013	102	39	27	36	38.24
Alloa Athletic		30 January 2014	07 March 2015	52	13	10	29	25.00
Aldershot Town		27 April 2015	Present	19	9	3	7	47.37
Total				173	61	40	72	35.26

External links

• Barry Smith career statistics at Soccerbase
• Barry Smith management career statistics at Soccerbase