The former Nottingham Forest youngster preparing to face FK partizan as David Gray does things differently
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Jordan Smith grew up at a club absolutely steeped in European pedigree.
Now he’s just grateful for the chance to play on the continent himself after thinking his chance had gone.
The Hibs keeper has already had his first taste of Euro action, playing both legs of the Hibees Europa League second round qualifier against FC Midtjylland which ended in spectacular yet heartbreaking fashion.
The Serbs may be playing second fiddle to bitter city rivals Crvena Zvezda – Red Star Belgrade in old money, who finished on 100 points and 27 clear of Partizan last season – but they remain amongst the more recognisable names of European football.
Smith learned his trade as a goalkeeper at twice European Cup winners Nottingham Forest. He might not be about to continue the tradition by lifting a European trophy, but that doesn’t mean he can’t help Hibs make their own history.
“I grew up as a youngster at Forest, where the older gentlemen around the place spoke with smiles on their faces about the great days when they won two European Cups,” he said.
“Those successes created so many great memories for everyone at that club and that’s what we want for Hibs. The gaffer challenges us to make our own history and that’s what we’ve given ourselves the chance to do.
“All the fans who travelled to Denmark with us last time were fantastic, it was special for them and for us. I’ve seen a few of them since and they’re so proud to be following us in Europe again.
“We want to give them a result that makes them even prouder. We want them to come away with memories that get passed down through the years.
“At Forest, the photos and all the other reminders are everywhere, at the stadium and the training ground – and to be honest, it’s quite hard to live up to that. As soon as new signings walk in the door, the first thing they show them is the replica of the European Cup. Then there’s the two stars on the badge, all that kind of stuff.
“It’s something everyone there can be very proud of and I was definitely proud to have worn that crest, to have represented them. I’m so glad they’re back at the top level again.
“In all honesty, I thought at 30 my chance of playing in Europe had gone.
“I’d kind of got lost in the English system and spent a long time wondering what my level was going to end up as.
“The gaffer’s spoken a lot about Dwight Gayle and what a career he’s had, but playing at this level is something he never got to do, so you never take it for granted.
“We actually hoped the chance of European football might have tempted him back, but it didn’t quite work.
“For me, though, as a 30-year-old, would I have expected it? No. So it’s testament to all of us here that we’ve earned the right to represent Hibs here.
“I hadn’t played first team football for a long time before getting my chance here and there’s no doubt that doubts begin to creep in. You have to work hard to maintain confidence in yourself, so I can’t sing the gaffer’s praises enough for having that confidence, for sticking with me.
“I’d like to think I’ve repaid his faith with my performance since coming into the team at the end of last October – I’m quite proud of myself, I give myself a little pat on the back, but never forgetting that the attention’s always on the next game and being at your best again.
“My game’s changed massively since the gaffer brought me in.
“There’s no pretending that when I came in the team wasn’t in a dark place, so it was all about trying hard not to make mistakes that would make things worse.
“But since then we’ve been on a great run, so we all feel a bit better about ourselves and it means I can work on helping the defenders in front of me more, taking some of the pressure off them.”
Hibs’ preparations for their trip to Denmark didn’t go to plan as major delays in Edinburgh threw them well off schedule.
They still left with a 2-2 draw, but David Gray is taking no chances for the trip to Belgrade and they are doing things differently given the logistics of flying to the Serbian capital.
“There is the element of that,” he explained. “You want your flight to be on time. You want to take off at the right time and land at the right time, but sometimes it doesn’t quite work like that.
“We had a delay going over to Denmark the last time, and sometimes things are out of your control. That could quite easily happen again.
“So if we get the work into the players in the morning, training-wise, we know if something was to happen and we didn’t arrive until later on at night, we know we’re getting there, having done the work, and the players can get a good night’s sleep. If they don’t go to the stadium, it’s not the end of the world.
“At least then everything’s geared up and ready. They know exactly what they’re going into and they can get ready for the next day, so it’s about making sure you do everything you can to mitigate risk.
“Denmark was a wee bit different with only being an hour and a bit away so we’re playing this one slightly differently. There are challenges you need to throw in there.”
