Kerr Smith is keen to gain more game-time in the Championship with Inverness. Image: SNS Group.
Kerr Smith is keen to gain more game-time in the Championship with Inverness. Image: SNS Group.
Kerr Smith is determined to get his career back on track at Inverness after injuries robbed him of making the breakthrough at Aston Villa.
The 21-year-old defender made only his second start for the Caley Jags on Saturday, helping Scott Kellacher’s side dish out a first defeat to Championship leaders Stenhousemuir in a deserved 2-0 victory.
The centre-half stepped in for Danny Devine, who missed out through injury, and could face Queen’s Park at the City Stadium on Tuesday night as ICT have the chance to move fourth.
In 2022, as a 17-year-old, Dundee United academy graduate Smith was snapped up by Steven Gerrard’s English Premier League club Villa for a reported initial fee of £800,000, which was expected with add-ons to break the £1million mark.
However, a string of repeat leg injuries meant his football action was limited to academy and under-23 action at Villa, bolstered by brief loan spells with Barrow and St Johnstone.
After being released by Villa this summer, he made the move to the north of Scotland, to join League One champions Inverness in the Championship.
‘I had three consecutive hamstring injuries on the same leg’
Smith, a former Scotland under-19 international player, detailed the injuries he faced when he was aiming to make an impact in England.
He said: “I had three consecutive hamstring injuries on the same leg.
“It just kept breaking down on my left leg, the same area and I couldn’t get that right.
“I also had a full ankle repair, also on my left side.
“I was an apprentice at Villa. I was serving my time.
“Now, I am going on 22, so I need to get men’s football in me.
“It has been really good since I’ve come here.
Kerr Smith, left, in derby action for Dundee United against Dundee in 2021. Image: SNS Group.
“Because I played first team football when I was 16 (at Dundee United), I found it quite difficult going down to England at the start. I went back into the academy set-up.
“Touch wood, I am feeling good. I have been injury-free for around five months.
“I am feeling back to myself and I’m ready to go.
“It was good to get 90 minutes against Stenhousemuir. That was really positive. I’m happy with that.
“Getting back to playing football and showing people what I can do were the main factors in me signing for Inverness.
“I am absolutely loving it. It’s a great group of boys and the manager has been really good with me since I’ve come in.”
‘It was setback after setback’ at Villa
Smith still takes positives from his time down south as he reflects on his eye-catching move from Tayside to Birmingham.
He said: “It is an opportunity everyone wants when you’re young.
“I went down there when I was 16-17, so I was just a little kid, to be honest.
“It was tough at the start, but once I found my feet it was good.
“My injuries didn’t help me, and I had a couple of loans. I couldn’t really get going. It was setback after setback, but I learned a lot throughout my five years there.
“I learned a lot about me. It was a top opportunity and one I loved, but it was time to move on and get first-team football.”
‘We showed we can defend and stand up for ourselves when we need to’
Inverness travel to Glasgow on a four-game unbeaten stretch and confidence is sky-high after sinking Stenhousemuir.
Queen’s Park’s 2-0 weekend loss at Raith Rovers dropped them to bottom spot on goal difference and Caley Thistle will hope they can get the win to move them to within two points of third-placed Partick Thistle.
Smith insists Inverness will always believe they can more than match any team in this season’s Championship.
He added: “Going into games, we always believe we have a good enough team to beat these sides and to keep clean sheets and get three points.
“The gaffer said beforehand it was all on us. We didn’t think about Stenhousemuir. We went on to the pitch and knew if we did our stuff on Saturday, we would get three points and we did that, thankfully.
“The boys were excellent on Saturday.
“In the first half, we could have been three or four up going in at half-time.
“In the second half, Stenhousemuir came on to us and pressed. We showed we can defend and stand up for ourselves when we need to.
“The second half was a professional performance, and it was good to get the clean sheet and three points on the board.
“It will be a tough game at Queen’s Park, but the boys will be ready for it.”