Nathan Smith (footballer, born 1996)

Not to be confused with Nathan Smith (footballer, born 1987).

Nathan Smith
Smith warming up at Vale Park in May 2022.
Personal information
Full name Nathan James Smith[1]
Date of birth (1996-04-03) 3 April 1996 (age 28)[2]
Place of birth Madeley, Staffordshire, England[3]
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[4]
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 Port Vale
Number 6
Youth career
2012–2014 Port Vale
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014– Port Vale 345 (21)
2014–2015 → Stafford Rangers (loan) 28 (1)
2015–2016 → Torquay United (loan) 39 (3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:27, 27 April 2024 (UTC)

Nathan James Smith (born 3 April 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL League Two club Port Vale. He has won praise for mental attributes such as bravery, consistency and commitment, as well as his pace and strength.

Smith turned professional at Port Vale in June 2014 and spent the 2014–15 season on loan at Stafford Rangers and the 2015–16 season on loan at Torquay United, winning the Player of the season award at Torquay. He made his Football League debut for Port Vale in August 2016 and went on to win the club's Player of the Year award for the 2016–17 relegation season. He helped the club to win promotion out of League Two via the play-offs in 2022 and was then again named as Port Vale's Player of the Year in 2022–23. He served as club captain for the 2023–24 relegation season.

  1. ^ "Retained List 2016-17" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  2. ^ "FootballSquads - Port Vale - 2021/2022". www.footballsquads.co.uk. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  3. ^ Baggaley, Michael (12 November 2017). "Neil Aspin pleased to have local lads in his in-form Port Vale side". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
  4. ^ "Nathan Smith - Defender - First Team - Port Vale". Port Vale F.C. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2018.