By Euan Maxwell
Chief reporter
ANNAN Athletic striker Aidan Smith reached the magic 100-goal mark last weekend, becoming the first-ever player to hit a century of SPFL strikes for the club. And the marksman didn’t just break the record – he did it in style, bagging the winner against rivals Stranraer to keep Annan’s play-off dreams alive. After the ball hit the net, the 100-goal hero didn’t just celebrate with the fans – he had a special message for his growing family. Smith quickly stuffed the match ball under his shirt in a touching tribute to his wife, who is due to give birth to a baby boy on May 3. A beaming Smith said: “I dedicated the goal to them. Hopefully that’s not my last goal before he arrives because there’s still a few weeks to go! “It feels amazing to score and there was no better way to do it than in front of the home crowd to secure the three points.” The Galabank goal-machine admitted his landmark strike was more about grit than glamour. The 28-year-old joked: “My first touch was poor – I couldn’t get the ball out of my feet! It wasn’t my cleanest strike, but the keeper couldn’t see it until the last minute.” Smith recalled his first goal for the club nearly a decade ago when he scored the winner in a 3-2 victory over Stirling Albion on his debut. [caption id="attachment_67499" align="alignnone" width="223"]
DEBUT GOAL . . . Aidan Smith scored on his first start for Annan nearly ten years ago[/caption] He added: “I remember my first goal because I was on the goalkeepers for corners. It was my first game, I didn’t even see the ball, it bounced off the side of my head and it went in the net. I just thought I’d take it!” The attacker has scored a raft of different type of goals but the two personal favourites came in the same season. Smith added: “The standout goals were against Stranraer and Montrose away two seasons ago. I scored two from about 35 yards out into the top corner. “I thought great that would mean I should get an award as they were two goal of the season contenders. “But then Rhys Breen scored from the half-way line against Montrose. I knew straight away I had no chance of winning it!” The victory was more than just a personal milestone, it breathed life into Annan’s play-off promotion hunt. Smith knows the pressure is on with just five matches left to play. But the task is an incredibly tough one as their next three games are all against sides occupying the top four positions. First up is away to League Two leaders East Kilbride this Saturday, before a lengthy trek up north to Elgin the following week. They then welcome title challengers Spartans to Galabank. Smith said: “We said if we didn’t win against Stranraer, it would be kiss goodbye to the play-offs. “We know we’re good enough to beat anyone in this league. Now we just have to dig in as we know we have three very difficult matches ahead.”
