Former Chesterfield, Luton Town and Swindon Town man Jonathan Smith set to 'move away' from full-time professional football

Former Chesterfield midfielder Jonathan Smith says he is likely to step away from full-time professional football as he weighs up his next career move.
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The Spireites opted not to offer the 34-year-old a new contract so his time at the club comes to an end after three years.

Smith has an interest in player recruitment but would like to continue putting his boots on as well.

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He told the DT: “I have had a few offers to stay full-time in the National League but for I think I am going to move away from the full-time part of it now. I have got a few options which are going to be quite difficult for me to turn down for the sake of another year in the National League. I know I can still do it, I am fit. Maybe, potentially, I could be playing part-time football but we will see if that suits what I am doing as well.”

Jonathan Smith joined Chesterfield in 2018.Jonathan Smith joined Chesterfield in 2018.
Jonathan Smith joined Chesterfield in 2018.

Martin Allen was the manager who brought Smith to the Blues and he joked that there were ‘too many’ memorable moments playing under ‘Mad Dog’.

“I had an amazing team playing for him,” he said. “I don’t think I have laughed so much or had a smile on my face in football than I did in that time under him. He is such a good guy. There are not many characters like him now. I don’t think you will see many like him again because he is such a character. I can’t really describe him.

“One that springs to mind is when we beat Billericay away in the FA Cup and he came in the dressing room after with his top off and waving his top around. I will always look back on that time with fond memories.”

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Within three months of Smith joining Town Allen was sacked in December after they fell into the National League relegation zone.

John Sheridan returned to the club and guided them to a mid-table finish that season but was sacked in January 2020 with the Spireites once again in the relegation zone.

“It was a bit of a struggle under John Sheridan,” Smith explained. “He seemed to struggle with the level and struggle with how things were going. He did not seem to enjoy it and it did look like he was enjoying coming in. He was an amazing player but I think he struggled to come down to this level. He is a good football man and I still enjoyed playing many games for John.”

After John Pemberton resigned just eight games into last season, Smith started the first three games under new boss Jame Rowe but did not feature from January onwards.

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“He (Rowe) is obviously a very good coach and a very clever guy,” Smith added. “You can see he has dedicated his life to being a football manager and I can relate to that because I have done the same to be a player. He has got that drive and desire to do well. He is going to be good for Chesterfield because he has got that hunger. It’s kind of ‘no one is going to step in my way, I am going to do what needs doing’ and that can only be good for the club.”

Read part one of our interview with Smith HERE