Mattha Smith

Mattha Smith
Personal information
Full name Matthew Smith[1]
Date of birth 31 December 1897
Place of birth Stevenston, Scotland
Date of death 16 May 1953(1953-05-16) (aged 55)[1]
Place of death Kilmarnock, Scotland[2]
Position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
0000–1916 Ardeer Thistle
1916–1931 Kilmarnock 413 (109)
1931–1933 Ayr United 33 (3)
1933–1934 Galston
International career
1916 Scotland Juniors 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Matthew Smith (31 December 1897 – 16 May 1953) was a Scottish professional footballer who made over 410 appearances in the Scottish League for Kilmarnock as a forward.[2] He captained the club and is the only player to have won two major trophies during their time at Rugby Park.[3][1] He was capped by Scotland at junior level.[4] After retiring from football, Smith coached at Ardrossan Winton Rovers and returned to Kilmarnock as a scout.[5][1]

Personal life

Smith's grandson Gordon also became a professional footballer.[1]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season[a] League Scottish Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Kilmarnock 1916–17[3] Scottish Division One 35 11 35 11
1917–18[3] 29 13 29 13
1919–20[3] 30 6 4 0 34 6
1920–21[3] 38 10 0 0 38 10
1921–22[3] 34 7 1 0 35 7
1922–23[3] 36 5 3 1 39 6
1923–24[3] 30 6 2 0 32 6
1924–25[3] 36 14 3 1 39 15
1925–26[3] 35 8 1 0 36 8
1926–27[3] 1 0 0 0 1 0
1927–28[3] 26 3 3 2 29 5
1928–29[3] 31 13 6 2 37 15
1929–30[3] 37 10 1 0 38 10
1930–31[3] 15 0 3 0 18 0
Total 413 109 24 6 437 115
Ayr United 1931–32[2] Scottish Division One 16 0 2 0 18 0
1932–33[2] 17 3 3 0 20 3
Total 33 3 5 0 38 3
Career total 446 112 29 6 475 118
  1. ^ Smith missed the entire 1918–19 season due to injury.[1]

Honours

Kilmarnock

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Mattha Smith | Former Players". www.killiefc.com. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Litster, John. Record of Pre-War Scottish League Players. Norwich: PM Publications.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Kilmarnock Player Mattha Smith Details". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  4. ^ "Scotland Junior Internationals". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Archived from the original on 5 May 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  5. ^ "Inaugural Kilmarnock FC Hall Of Fame Dinner". www.kilmarnockfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2016.