Adam Smith (coach)

Adam Smith is a soccer coach and former goalkeeper. He is head coach at Fresno FC in the US United Soccer League.^[2][3] Smith formerly was the assistant head coach for Sacramento Republic^[4] in which he spent three years with and was the technical director for youth soccer club FC Elk Grove.

Smith's professional coaching career started as a player/assistant coach at Wilmington Hammerheads in the USL D-3 Pro League in 2001. Later in his career he joined Portland Timbers,^[5] where he became the inaugural Goalkeeping Coach for the teams' first year in Major League Soccer. Smith later went on to be the clubs first Academy Director,^[6] along with co-director Mike Smith. After serving 5 years with the MLS club he moved to return to first team professional football with Sacramento at the start of the 2015 season, to work alongside then head coach Predrag Radosavljević (Preki). Prior to starting his professional coaching career, Smith previously played professional soccer as a goalkeeper in the USA with Long Island Rough Riders and Wilmington Hammerheads. Smith also gained professional playing experience in England, Scotland, Wales and South East Asia before moving permanently to the United States. He is the son of Graham Smith, an ex-professional English footballer who was previously a director at Chelsea of the (English) Premier League.

Career

Playing career Smith, who played as goalkeeper, began his professional playing career in 1992 after graduating from Manchester Metropolitan University in England with a degree in business and sports coaching. Smith did not make a British league full appearance but was able to ply his trade in non-league football (making over 150 first team semi-professional appearances). He then went on work in the USA as a full-time professional, playing in the second division league before moving into full-time coaching.

Coaching career

Smith (originally from England and now a US citizen) has over twenty-five years of domestic and international experience as a coach and player.

Personal life

Smith lives in California with his wife and two children. Smith also qualified as a financial advisor. During his part-time professional playing, he worked for an insurance company and a national banking institution. His father, Graham Smith, was a professional footballer. Graham Smith has had over 200 English league appearances as a professional player and has continued his work in the football/soccer world, currently with Sacramento Republic FC in the USA as director of football.

Honors

Playing

• USL National Championship winner, Long island Rough Riders, 2002
• USL National Championship winner, Wilmington Hammerheads, 2003

Coaching

• USL PDL National Championship winner, Portland Timbers u23s, 2010
• USL playoffs 2nd place Western conference, Portland Timbers, 2010
• MLS Goalkeeper player of the year (Troy Perkins), Portland Timbers, 2011
• MLS Reserve Team 2nd-place position, Portland Timbers, 2011
• USL Western conference playoffs, Sacramento Republic, 2015
• USL 1st place Western conference, Sacramento Republic, 2016
• US Open Cup round of 16, Sacramento Republic, 2017
• USL Western conference semi-finals, Sacramento Republic, 2017

Coaching qualifications

Uefa A license (Welsh Football Association)

English Preliminary Award (English FA)

USSF A license (US Soccer)

USSF National GK license (US Soccer)

USSF Pro B license (US Soccer)

NSCAA National GK License (Utd Soccer coaches)

NSCAA Director of Coaching (Utd Soccer coaches)

References