By Ben McNicol
Hamilton Accies goalkeeper Jamie Smith admits that he’s reaping the benefits of playing first-team football with Lowland League side Broomhill FC and believes it’ll only aid his case of becoming Hamilton’s first choice shot stopper in the future.
The 19-year-old made his debut against Kilmarnock in the final game of last season and saved a penalty from Mitch Pinnock in what was a memorable outing, despite a 2-0 defeat.
Following the arrival of Joe Hilton and the return of Ryan Scully over the summer to challenge No.1 Ryan Fulton, Smith believed it was best to go out on loan for the remainder of the campaign as his first-team opportunities were most likely limited.
Smith's latest outing at Broomhill came in last night's 2-1 defeat to East Kilbride and he said: "I knew the manager {David Gormley} from my previous loan spell at Rossvale so he phoned me and asked if I was able to go and play some games for them this season.
"I knew my chances of playing for Hamilton were slim therefore I asked to go out on loan and I’m thankful to Hamilton for allowing me to do so.
“I’ve only managed to play one game for Hamilton so far but I absolutely loved it and feeling the pressure of something to play for again was great."
The Accies academy graduate has represented Scotland at U17 level in the Euro’s and still harbours ambitions of being a first-team regular at the club - and following the path of talented youngsters who’ve broken through the academy in recent years.
Smith continued: “I would love to play for Hamilton if I get the chance, that’s my overall goal which I am currently working towards.
"My Accies debut was a really special moment, it was unbelievable to be honest.
"It wasn’t the result we were after on the day but I’m really grateful to George Cairns, Brian Potter, and everyone else involved.
"The most important thing for me on that occasion was giving a good account of myself and I feel like I done well.”
Smith has also joined up with Sean Slaven, who departed Accies at the end of last season to pursue a career as a landscaper. The pair both featured in last night's match for Broomhill, which leaves the side 13th in the table with nine points from 10 games.
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