AFC Bournemouth
As dress rehearsals go, Adam Smith’s introduction to life at AFC Bournemouth certainly gave him a taste of things to come.
Smith earned his Cherries stripes during a successful loan spell from Tottenham in 2010/11, a season which ended with a play-off near miss.
Drafted in by Eddie Howe, he starred at right-back having impressed the boss playing for Spurs reserves and against the Cherries during a loan spell with Torquay the previous season.
Smith’s 38 appearances in League One included a maiden senior goal, a dramatic injury-time equaliser in a 3-3 draw with fellow high-fliers Peterborough on April Fool’s Day 2011.
He also started both legs of the play-off semi-final when the Cherries suffered an agonising penalty shootout defeat at the hands of Huddersfield after the tie had ended 4-4 on aggregate.
Speaking to afcb.co.uk on the eve of the tenth anniversary of his strike at London Road, Smith recalled his first impressions of a club he would go on to sign permanently for in January 2014.
“It makes me feel old to think it was ten years ago!” laughed the 29-year-old.
“I knew Eddie and Jason had been looking at me for a while before I eventually signed on loan and I nearly came here when I was 17.
“I remember my debut against Carlisle because I won a penalty for our second goal and I remember getting sent off for the first time in my career at Southampton. That was disappointing, especially against your local rivals.
“Eddie and Jason left after we had lost to Colchester in the January and were replaced by Lee Bradbury and Steve Fletcher.
“I don’t remember too much about the Colchester game but I remember them coming into the changing room and telling us they were going.
“There had always been talk of them going to other teams and Eddie would tell us he wouldn’t be going anywhere because he loved the club.
“But then Burnley came in and they were a different kettle of fish. I remember them coming in to say goodbye to the lads. It was quite emotional for the lads who had been there a while.
“In our next game away to Rochdale, Eddie was apparently texting tactics to Bradders and Fletch.
“Rochdale were targeting me with long balls and Eddie was telling them to get a central midfielder over to help me. That was the type of guy he was. He’d just left and was texting because he wanted to help.
“Bradders and Fletch kept things normal and it was a good decision by the club to put them in charge and not change too much.
“I’ll always remember my first goal against Peterborough. I had a bit of a beast in the game, especially in the first half. I was a bit better in the second.
“It wasn’t the best shot from me but the goalkeeper let it go under him and it was a great draw in the end because Peterborough was a tough place to go to and I was buzzing to get my first goal.
“I don’t remember too much about the first leg of the play-off semi-final but I remember Steve Lovell was unreal and scored a great goal in the second leg. What a great player he was.
“To lose on penalties was horrible and it was just the worst feeling in the world.
“It was my first full season so it definitely helped me through my career.”
Smith had further loan spells at MK Dons and Leeds before making his Premier League debut for Spurs in a 2-0 win over Fulham in May 2012.
And after turning out for Millwall and Derby in the Championship, he finally severed ties with his boyhood club when he swapped White Hart Lane for Vitality Stadium in January 2014.
Asked whether leaving Spurs had been a wrench, Smith, capped 11 times by England under-21s, said: “It was horrible. I’d been there since I was seven.
“You always think you’re going to get a chance to play in the first team and get a run of games.
“It was all I knew. I always had Tottenham to fall back on, even when I was on loan. Everyone in my family supported Tottenham, I supported them.
“It was a massive decision whether to stay there or leave and try to settle somewhere else instead of going on loan every year. It was horrible but it was the best decision I’ve made in my life.
“It was always in my mind that I would come to Bournemouth, play well and earn a move back to a Premier League club.
“That was the plan so it was even better when I got promoted to the Premier League with Bournemouth. Other than last season, I’ve loved every minute of it.”
Smith, who aggravated an ankle injury during the Cherries’ 3-2 defeat by Barnsley, is hoping to be in contention for the Easter double-header against Middlesbrough on Good Friday and the trip to Blackburn Rovers on Bank Holiday Monday (both 3pm kick-offs).
“The next two games are massive,” said Smith. “We need to get a good run together and I think we’ve got a good chance of getting in the play-offs.
“We’ve got to be more consistent and can’t have good games and then bad ones. There are only nine games left so we need to push on.”