Former South Shields FC midfielder's surprise Gateshead appearance explained by Lee Cattermole
Martin Smith was named in Gateshead's starting eleven for Tuesday's pre-season friendly win at Northern League club Blyth Town.
Former South Shields FC midfielder Martin Smith made a surprise appearance during Gateshead’s pre-season friendly win at Blyth Town after being named as first-team coach at the National League club.
New Heed manager Lee Cattermole moved to strengthen his backroom staff earlier this month as Smith joined former Sunderland and Hartlepool United defender Ben Clark within Gateshead’s coaching ranks. That move comes just weeks after Smith’s time with South Shields came to an end after he helped the Mariners secure the Northern Premier League title and establish themselves within the National League North during his time at Mariners Park
The move to Gateshead appeared to have brought an end to his playing career - although he got his boots back on when he was named in Cattermole’s starting eleven for the 6-0 win at Blyth on Tuesday night. However, the former Sunderland and Middlesbrough midfielder has explained the reason behind his surprise selection.
He told The Gazette: “If you’ve got a coach on the staff that can still play, and Martin definitely can, it’s an opportunity to play and let him feel what we are working on in training. There was a tactic there from a staff point of view where we thought why use a young player when Martin could go in and feel what we are doing on the pitch and make use of that as a coach. We have an added bonus having Smudge like that. The lads know that he is first-team coach, he’s not in a dual role here.”
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