Former Loxwood striker remains at the Beacon for 2022-23
Won’t you stay with me? Yes was the answer Sam Smith gave to that question as the defender-turned-striker will remain a Hassocks player for the 2022-23 season.
Smith joined the Robins from Loxwood in November, making six starts and eight substitute appearances in the Robins’ much improved second half of the 2021-22 campaign.
He scored on his Hassocks debut in a 5-2 defeat away at Eastbourne Town and was again on target in April’s 6-2 loss at home to eventual Southern Combination League champions Littlehampton Town.
Despite suffering with several injuries, Smith showed in those 14 outings what he can offer Hassocks as a powerful target man style striker.
Smith started his career as a defender, turning out for both Eastbourne Borough and Eastbourne Town. He spent two seasons in the Under 19s setup with National League South outfit Borough and made a handful of Isthmian League appearances for Town in the 2013-14 season.
His best run of games at the Saffrons came when Town were in the Southern Combination League. He was used across the back line although predominantly as either a central defender or left back, playing 24 times. That took his overall career record with Town to 28 matches.
Smith joined Loxwood in 2019 and it was with the Magpies that he underwent his successful conversion from defender to striker. Two ankle operations during his time at Plaistow Road restricted him to 35 appearances in two-and-a-half seasons, from which he scored six times.
One of those goals came in the Southern Combination Supplementary Shield competition, which Loxwood advanced to the final of under the management of Spencer Slaughter and new Hassocks head coach James Westlake.
The Magpies finished runners up after being losing on penalties to Isthmian League bound Lancing. When Slaughter and Westlake left Loxwood four months later, Smith was one of a number of their former players who eventually followed them to the Beacon.
