SMUDGE HASN’T WANDERED FAR
NEIL SMITH insists he is no football snob – in fact, he is actually quite nervous at the prospect of dropping down a couple of levels at Cray Wanderers.
The 50-year-old is back in the dugout at Bromley’s Hayes Lane with their Isthmian Premier Division tenants battling to save their Step 3 status.
Smith spent five happy years at Bromley, helping the club to promotion, a Wembley final and into the higher reaches of the National League.
Now, though, after a year away, the man nicknamed Smudge is back in the hotseat and ready to take on one of the toughest challenges of his managerial career.
Pressure
The Wands are a club with big ambitions both on and off the field but have struggled to fulfil their potential this season and are currently languishing in the bottom three.
Smith has his work cut but despite not having worked at that level throughout his playing or managerial career, the former Gillingham, Reading and Woking midfielder is relishing the challenge.
“I’m not a football snob, I just love the game,” Smith told The NLP. “I’m not one of those people who claim to better than any particular level. If I go into a job, wherever that may be, then I’ll do it to the best of my ability.
“I am a bit nervous to be honest. Not because of the pressure of a new job because I want to do well and I don’t want to let anyone down.
“Management is not a job to me, it’s a passion. I’ve wanted to get back into it for a long time but it had to be right for me.
Vulture
“Going back to the same dugout at Hayes Lane, but under a different club’s banner, is a bit weird, but this is an ambitious club right on my doorstep, run by good people, so it was the perfect challenge.”
Smith was widely tipped to make his reout turn at former club Woking following the shock sacking of Alan Dowson, but revealed how he distanced himself from the role despite having attended a number of games at Kingfield.
“Alan Dowson is a good friend of mine,” he explained. “I could see he was under a bit of pressure and I didn’t want to be seen as a vulture so I decided to steer clear for a bit.
“If asked, of course I would have been up for it but that’s gone now, my focus now is on Cray and helping them stay up.”