Andy Smith

Andrew William Smith (born 25 September 1980) is a former Northern Ireland international footballer and coach who is now the manager of Finnish Veikkausliiga club Haka.

He had a 16-year career playing professional and semi-professional football in Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, Belgium, and Portugal.

An energetic forward, he began his career at Ballyclare Comrades, before signing with Sheffield United in September 1999.

Smith began his career in the Irish League First Division with Ballyclare Comrades, before he was signed by English First Division side Sheffield United in September 1999.

He had a two-month loan spell at Second Division club Bury in December 2000.

In total he played ten games for the "Blades" in the 2000–01 campaign, and also featured three times for the "Shakers".

He struggled with ankle and shoulder injuries at Bramall Lane.

He was loaned out to Glenavon in November 2001, and scored three goals in 13 Irish League Premier Division games.

He played on loan at Bury and Glenavon, before signing with Glentoran in February 2002.

He spent just over two years with the club, and his prolific scoring form helped the "Glens" to win the Irish League (2002–03), County Antrim Shield (2003), Irish League Cup (2003), and Irish Cup (2004).

Smith returned to Northern Ireland on a permanent basis when he signed with Glentoran in February 2002, and scored two goals in ten league games in the remainder of the 2001–02 campaign.

He had a prolific 2002–03 season to help Glentoran win a treble (the league title, County Antrim Shield, and Irish League Cup), scoring 35 goals in all competitions, and was described as a "fans favourite" due to his "peroxide blonde" hair and "cheeky goal celebrations".

His goal tally included a 12-minute hat-trick in a 6–1 win over Institute on New Year's Eve.

He played in the League Cup final, a 2–0 win over Linfield at Windsor Park.

He scored a goal as Glentoran lifted the County Antrim Shield with a 3–0 victory over Ballymena United.

The "Glens" could have won a quadruple, but lost 1–0 Coleraine in the final of the Irish Cup after a shot from Jody Tolan deflected off Smith into the net.

He also won 18 caps for Northern Ireland between 2003 and 2005 and one cap for the Northern Ireland B team in 2003.

He was sidelined from The Oval for a month with a knee injury, but managed to score seven goals in 23 league games in the 2003–04 campaign.

He helped Glentoran to win the Irish Cup in his final appearance for the club, as they beat Coleraine 1–0 to avenge their defeat the previous year.

He was sold to Preston North End for £130,000 in July 2004, but failed to score a goal in the English Football League.

He struggled with injuries and had brief loan spells at Stockport County, Motherwell, and Cheltenham Town.

Smith returned to English professional football after he was signed by manager Craig Brown at Championship club Preston North End for an undisclosed fee (later reported to be £130,000 ) in July 2004; his international teammate David Healy recommended the club to Smith.

He had been due to sign for Milton Keynes Dons when Preston hijacked the deal with a late bid to take him to Deepdale.

He featured in 17 games for the "Lambs" in the 2004–05 season, without scoring a goal.

He was loaned out to League One club Stockport County in November 2004, who were managed by his former Northern Ireland boss Sammy McIlroy; Preston manager Billy Davies said he hoped the move would boost Smith's confidence levels.

However, he returned to Preston after playing just twice at Edgeley Park.

He joined Scottish Premier League side Motherwell on loan in August 2005, and was described by manager Terry Butcher as "an enthusiastic type of player who always works his socks off".

He played nine matches for the "Steelmen" during the 2005–06 without scoring a goal at Fir Park.

He joined Cheltenham Town on loan in November 2006, which saw Cheltenham fans pay his wages as the club were in financial difficulties.

Manager John Ward said he was "really grateful to all the supporters who have come forward with the funds to make it happen".

However, Smith made just three starts for the "Robins" before returning to Preston after three weeks after he refused to sit on the bench for an FA Cup first round replay at Scunthorpe United.

He joined Bristol City in February 2007, and helped the "Robins" to win promotion out of League One in 2006–07 despite again failing to score a goal.

He went back into Northern Ireland semi-professional football with Portadown in October 2007, but did not play in the 2008–09 season due to a contract dispute.

His Preston contract was cancelled by mutual consent in January 2007.

Smith joined Gary Johnson's Bristol City on a two-month contract on 23 February 2007.

He joined Ballymena United in July 2009, and stayed with the club for two seasons.

He later had brief stays at Union Royale Namur (Belgium), Carrick Rangers, Crusaders, and Moura (Portugal).

He began his coaching career as Bruno Ribeiro's assistant at Moura, and later followed him to Pinhalnovense, Ludogorets Razgrad (Bulgaria), Académico de Viseu, and Port Vale.

He managed Slovakian club Dubnica for a brief spell in 2022.

He was appointed manager of Finnish club Haka in October 2023.