Bill Smith

Bill Smith

Born in Newcastle in 1887, Bill was a prolific goalscorer at schoolboy level and started attracting scouts when he was turning out for South Shields Adelaide leading to a move to Exeter.

At Exeter he netted over 50 goals in first and reserve team football in 1910-11 which encouraged a £300 bid from top-flight Burnley where he was never given a first team opportunity.

Joining the Town in the summer of 1912, following the club’s relegation to Southern League Division Two, he proved to be very fast with a good shot but was not a consistent goalscorer against mainly weak Welsh opposition. He became more of a supplier of chances and was released at the end of the campaign to join Mid-Rhondda.