Bobby_Smith_(Scottish_footballer)
Bobby Smith (footballer, born 1953)
Scottish footballer
Robert Nisbet Smith (21 December 1953 – 22 February 2010) was a Scottish footballer who played most prominently for Hibernian and Leicester City. Smith was primarily a midfielder, but could also play at full back.[4] Smith made 200 appearances in all competitions for both Hibs and Leicester.[1]
Smith started his professional career with Hibs, where he played a part in the successful teams of the early and mid-1970s.[1] Smith attracted the attention of Rangers manager Jock Wallace by scoring a spectacular goal for Hibs against Rangers in a 1976 match.[1] Wallace became Leicester City manager in 1978, and signed Smith for an £85,000 transfer fee later that year.[1] Smith helped Leicester win promotion to the top division twice during his spell with the club.[1] He regularly captained Leicester during his eight years there.[5]
He was loaned to Peterborough and Hibs during the 1982–83 season, and then returned to Hibs on a "permanent" basis in 1986.[1] After leaving Hibs for the final time in 1987, Smith played a prominent defensive role for a Dunfermline side that gained promotion to the Premier Division,[4] but was released at the end of that season.[6]
After ending his career with spells at Partick Thistle and Berwick Rangers, Smith became a taxi driver,[6] and later ran a pub in Dalkeith called Smith's Bar.[1] He died in February 2010 after suffering from cancer, less than a week after former teammate Alan Gordon died from the same illness.[1][7]