Summary
John Smits (born September 7, 1988) is a Canadian soccer player and coach.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | September 7, 1988 | ||
| Place of birth | Mississauga, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Serbian White Eagles | ||
| Youth career | |||
| A.C. Diavoli | |||
| College career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2008–2011 | Toronto Varsity Blues | 28 | (0) |
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2015 | FC Edmonton | 38 | (0) |
| 2015 | → Montreal Impact (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2016 | Wilmington Hammerheads | 18 | (0) |
| 2022 | Unionville Milliken SC | 1 | (0) |
| 2022– | Serbian White Eagles | 1 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024– | Canada (futsal) | 1 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2017– | Toronto Varsity Blues (goalkeeping coach) | ||
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of September 1, 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of April 14, 2024 | |||
Early life edit
Smits played youth soccer with A.C. Diavoli.[1]
University career edit
From 2008 to 2011, Smits attended the University of Toronto, where he played for the men's soccer team.[1] In 2009, he was named an OUA East Second Team All-Star, after recording a CIS-leading 11 shut outs in 2009.[2] In 2010, he helped the team win the 2010 OUA championship, earning player of the match honours in the final, and was also named an OUA First Team All-Star.[2]
Club career edit
In March 2012, Smits signed with FC Edmonton of the North American Soccer League in 2012.[2] Smits made his professional debut against the Atlanta Silverbacks on May 12, 2012, posting a shutout.[3] In 2014, Smits won the NASL Golden Glove as the league's top goalkeeper, after finishing with the lowest goals against average in the league that season.[4] In April 2015, Smits joined the Montreal Impact on a short-term loan for the 2014–15 CONCACAF Champions League semi-final.[5][6][7] He re-joined on another short-term loan for the final.[8][9][10] He served as the backup for Montreal and did not make an appearance, before returning to Edmonton for the remainder of the season.[11] After the 2015 season, he was released by the club, after losing his starting spot during the season.[12]
In February 2016, Smits signed with the Wilmington Hammerheads of the USL.[13][14] Smits would only spend one season in Wilmington, as the club announced that they would not participate in the 2017 USL season.[15][16]
In April 2022, he played one match for Unionville Milliken SC in League1 Ontario.[17]
In May 2022, he made a lone appearance for Canadian Soccer League side Serbian White Eagles FC but broke his foot in the match and had to be substituted.[18]
International career edit
Smits has played for the Canada national beach soccer team.[19]
In April 2024, he was named to the Canada national futsal team roster for the 2024 CONCACAF Futsal Championship.[20][21]
Coaching career edit
In July 2017, Smits returned to his university team, the Toronto Varsity Blues, as goalkeeper coach.[22]
Other playing edit
In 2023, he played with Sports Leagues Canada FC at the The Soccer Tournament, finishing in second place.[23]
Statistics edit
Statistics accurate as of May 1, 2022[24]
| Club | Season | League | Domestic Cup | Playoffs | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| FC Edmonton | NASL | 2012 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 0 | ||
| NASL | 2013 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| NASL | 2014 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 0 | |||
| NASL | 2015 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 38 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 0 | ||
| Montreal Impact (loan) | MLS | 2015 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Wilmington Hammerheads | USL | 2016 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 0 | ||
| Unionville Milliken SC | League1 Ontario | 2022[17] | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 57 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 62 | 0 | ||
References edit
- ^ a b "John Smits Varsity Blues profile". Toronto Varsity Blues.
- ^ a b c "Smits signs with FC Edmonton". Toronto Varsity Blues. March 27, 2012.
- ^ Sandor, Steven. "Smits Gets The Shutout In His First NASL Start As FCE Beats Atlanta". The 11. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015.
- ^ Swane, Brian (November 19, 2014). "FC Edmonton's John Smits win NASL Golden Glove award". Edmonton Sun.
- ^ "Goalkeeper John Smits on loan with the Impact". Montreal Impact. April 4, 2015.
- ^ "Eddies goalkeeper John Smits will join Montreal Impact on temporary loan". North American Soccer League. April 3, 2015.
- ^ "L'impact acquiert le gardien John Smits" [Impact acquires goaltender John Smits]. La Presse (in French). April 4, 2015.
- ^ "Impact re-acquires goalkeeper John Smits on short-term loan". Montreal Impact. April 19, 2015.
- ^ "FC Edmonton goalkeeper John Smits joins Impact on loan for CCL final". North American Soccer League. April 20, 2015.
- ^ Swane, Brian (April 19, 2015). "FC Edmonton goalkeeper John Smits to join Montreal Impact for CONCACAF Champions League final". Edmonton Sun.
- ^ Itel, Dan (April 28, 2015). "From CIS to CCL: John Smits' unlikely path to brink of Champions League glory with Montreal Impact". Major League Soccer.
- ^ Sandor, Steven (October 28, 2015). "Smits, Jonke among the five players released by FC Edmonton". The 11. Archived from the original on October 29, 2015.
- ^ "Wilmington Hammerheads Sign Goalkeeper John Smits". Wilmington Hammerheads FC. 25 February 2016. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
- ^ Brown, McLeod (16 April 2016). "Smits happy with fresh start". Wilmington Star-News. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
- ^ Smits, John. "John Smits on Instagram: "I would like to thank everyone I've met during my time in Wilmington, NC for an amazing experience that I'll truly never forget. The…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-26.
- ^ "Wilmington Hammerheads signs removed from Legion Stadium". WECT. September 30, 2016.
- ^ a b "UMSC 2022 Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Solid Eagles in Season Opening". Serbian White Eagles FC. 29 May 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "John Smits Varsity Blues coaching profile". Toronto Varsity Blues.
- ^ "Canada Soccer unveils roster for the 2024 CONCACAF Futsal Championship". Canadian Soccer Association. April 5, 2024.
- ^ Davidson, Neil (5 April 2024). "Canada futsal players put club rivalry aside to join forces at CONCACAF Championship". The Canadian Press.
- ^ U of T Varsity Blues [@Varsity_Blues] (July 17, 2017). "Men's soccer welcomes home Varsity Blues alumnus John Smits as the teams new goalkeeper coach! WE ALL #BLEEDBLUE #WeAreTO" (Tweet). Retrieved November 18, 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Canadian entry finishes runner-up at US$1-million 7vs7 soccer tournament". Winnipeg Free Press. June 4, 2023.
- ^ John Smits at Soccerway
External links edit
- John Smits at Soccerway
- John Smits at the Canadian Soccer Association