Gold Coast United sign grand final-winning Gold Coast Knights NPL captain Sam Smith
GOLD Coast United have landed a major NPL blow on cross-town rivals Gold Coast Knights after luring championship-winning captain Sam Smith to the club.
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GOLD Coast United have landed a major NPL blow on cross-town rivals Gold Coast Knights after luring championship-winning captain Sam Smith to the club.
In a move that will add further spice to next season’s NPL derbies, United on Saturday announced Smith had agreed to reunite with coach Kristian Rees at Coplick Family Sports Park in 2020.
A goalscoring revelation since arriving in Australia in late 2016, Smith and the Knights parted ways at the end of last month and United have leveraged their connections to the 29-year-old striker to snap him up.
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Having worked with Rees and played alongside veteran United midfielder Justyn McKay at Gold Coast City in 2017, Smith said it was “the right time of my career to make the move” to the Surfsiders.
“I’ve worked with Kristian before and I know the standards he expects, the plans he has and his outlook on football. These all align with mine,” the Englishman said.
“And I’ve played with Justyn before and he’s also a very good friend. He’s told me nothing but good things about the club.
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“He’s a quality player and we know how each other thinks and likes to play the game. He’s someone I really enjoy playing alongside.”
Smith won the NPL Golden Boot in 2017 with now-defunct City, before finding the net nine times in 24 NPL Victoria appearances for Port Melbourne the following year.
Upon returning to the Coast, Smith struck 12 times for the Knights and captained them to grand final glory against Olympic last month.
“Sam’s a quality player with an eye for the net,” Rees said.
“He’s someone who knows and reads the game well and can communicate that with others.
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“And he’s also a role model for young players in terms of his approach to the game on and off the park.
“Have another experienced player with a professional approach to the game around the place is massive. Not only will he help organise things on the pitch but he’ll show young players how to conduct themselves off it and set a standard in and around the sheds too.”
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