Newcastle United have added another youth talent to their ranks with the signing of East Fife goalkeeper Jude Smith. The 19-year-old stopper impressed the Magpies during a trial earlier this summer and has signed a two-year deal with the club.
Smith joined Celtic as a youngster before being released by the Scottish giants last summer. He was snapped up by East Fife and made 25 league appearances as the club were relegated from the Scottish League One. Despite the team's poor performance, Smith picked up East Fife Supporters’ Club young player and players’ player of the year, and the East Fife Supporters’ Trust player of the year.
The deal for Smith reiterates the point that Newcastle have changed their transfer focus since the club's £300m takeover and are now targeting the best young players from around the country, as well as top first-team talent. The club's youth ranks were never a priority under Mike Ashley's regime and subsequently suffered.
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Speaking after Smith's move was confirmed, East Fife Goalkeeping Coach Lindsay Hamilton said: “Moving from full-time football to part-time can be a culture shock and a big risk for some players but Jude has shown that with hard work and a good work ethic you can make the step back up, which is impressive.
“Jude has surpassed my expectations, not only with the number of games he’s played, but the performances that have accompanied them. He was thrown into the deep end a bit with the injury to Scott Gallacher but made the transition to our number one with ease and deserves his move to Newcastle.”
Charlie McArthur, Alex Murphy and Jordan Hackett have all been snapped up in recent weeks to bolster Elliott Dickman's Under-21 squad. Smith will join the youngsters in the youth setup after his move was confirmed Friday.
"I'm buzzing to be signing for Newcastle United," Smith told Nufc.co.uk. "After playing in the lower leagues of Scotland, I couldn't be happier with the opportunity to go and play for a club like Newcastle.
"I was playing part-time at East Fife last season so it's a great opportunity to be full-time with Newcastle. It's an unbelievable chance for me to go and develop my career further so it was a no-brainer for me to join."
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