Background
Smith was born in Hendon, the son of a professional football player.
Smith was born in Hendon, the son of a professional football player.
Before becoming a manager, he had a playing career as an amateur, playing for the Corinthian Casuals. He trained at Loughborough College of Education before becoming a teacher. He decided to remain in teaching rather than becoming a professional football player but played as an amateur for the Corinthian Casuals.
Smith spent nine years coaching in Sussex before becoming team manager and coach to the Conference of English Grammar Schools.
He was then appointed the Football Association of Wales Director of Coaching with responsibility for managing the Welsh amateur and youth international teams. In 1974, Smith succeeded Dave Bowen to become the first English-born manager and first full-time manager of the Wales national football team, and guided Wales to the quarter-finals of the 1976 European Football Championship.
He was replaced by Mike England in 1979. In December 1979, he was appointed manager of Hull City but was sacked, along with coach Cyril Lea in March 1982.
Following a spell in sports promotion in Nottingham, Smith became the manager of in 1985.
He left the ian side in 1988, following which he was appointed Football development consultant to Anglesey County Council, overseeing their school of excellence in Holyhead. He also took charge of the Wales Youth team in 1989-1990 before returning to the Wales national team role for 18 months from April 1994 to September 1995.
As a youth, he represented Middlesex at Under-15 and Under-18 levels and was a member of the FA Youth team which played a tournament in Strasbourg in 1953.
