March 18 – Gary’s International Adventure

FOR many years the biggest claim to fame that Tamworth, just north of Birmingham, could muster was that it was the home of the Reliant Robin three-wheeled car, favoured transport of the Trotter brothers.

But all that changed today in 2000 with a most unlikely story about a young man named Gary. Back then Gary Smith was a 33-year-old striker for non-league Tamworth FC who, at the time plied their trade in the Doctor Martens League, two levels below the Conference.

One day a fax came through to the club which Gary thought must have been a wind-up. He had received, completely out of the blue, an international call-up . . . . for Caribbean minnows St Kitts and Nevis.

Gary had only visited St Kitts twice so it was something of a surprise. He said at the time: “A fax arrived from St Kitts a fortnight ago but I just thought one of the lads was taking the mickey. I was shocked. Me, at the ripe old age of 33, going to play international football?”

A telephone call from the St Kitts and Nevis manager Cec Podd, who played 494 games for Bradford from 1970-1983, confirmed it was no wind-up.

“It’s just unbelievable,” says Smith. “I went over there at Christmas to visit my family for a couple of weeks. I needed to try and keep fit and one of the lads from the national side, Keith Gums [who had a trial at Hull], invited me to play in a National XI versus a Foreign XI game. I played with the foreigners and we beat them 6-2, and I scored twice. It was just a kickabout. There was no intention to impress anybody.”

But unbeknown to him Podd was watching the match and spoke to him after the game, although Gary had no idea who he was at the time. “He kept saying to me, ‘Stay fit, stay fit’,” he said. “I just thought, ‘All right mate, I’ll stay fit. Calm down.’ Then the fax arrived telling me I’m in the squad. It’s unbelievable.”

The call up meant he would be unavailable at his club for the best part of a month – losing players to international duty was not common for the then Tamworth manager Paul Hendrie, father of Sheffield United’s Lee. “It’s very flattering for the lad. We’ll miss him, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance, something he’ll have forever.”

“The gaffer’s wrapping me in cotton wool,” Smith says. “He’d hate for me to pick up an injury. Mind you, he can’t leave an international out that much; if he does I’ll be knocking on his door. How many of the others have got a full cap?”

“I’ve had the wind-ups,” he added. “The lads tell people not to talk to me because I’m an international, but everyone’s been great. The manager’s chuffed to bits – he’s never coached an international before – and my mum’s so proud. To get this chance at this age is a great honour.”

Today in 2000 Smith got his wish when he lined up at the National Stadium in Basseterre in front of 853 fans to face the Turks and Caicos Islands in a 2002 World Cup qualifier. “I’d never heard of them,” Smith admitted before he flew off. “But I doubt they’ve heard of Tamworth either. I’ve been looking up on the internet to see how St Kitts rank against them and we’re miles ahead; we’ve got to beat these guys. If we win we could play Jamaica, Mexico or USA. Can you imagine? Playing in the Aztec in front of 100,000 people; I think I’d just run out and collapse.”

When he crossed the white line that day he made history as Tamworth’s first ever international player, and he lived up to expectations by getting on the score sheet as his team won 8-0. He scored again in the return leg – this time just a 6-0 win.

Alas Smith’s dreams of playing in the Aztec were dashed when St Kitts were paired with St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the next round, where they were beaten 3-1 over two legs. Still, it’s more international football than most of us will ever get to play, so hats off Gary.

That’s all for today gang, but we’ll be back tomorrow with more as usual. Until then, can you guess which pioneering Dutch football club was founded on this day? No? Well find out right here.