Crawley skipper Smith relishing meeting with ex-Town captain Bradley

Crawley Town skipper Jimmy Smith is relishing coming up against a previous Reds captain on Saturday.
Crawley Town skipper Jimmy SmithCrawley Town skipper Jimmy Smith
Crawley Town skipper Jimmy Smith

Red Devils entertain second-placed Plymouth Argyle this weekend with former Crawley centre-half Sonny Bradley set to feature.

Bradley, 25, signed with now Reds skipper Smith back in 2014, before making the move to The Pilgrims in the summer.

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Having played with him for two seasons, Smith is looking forward to facing his former team-mate but admitted any friendship will go out of the window for 90 minutes.

He said: “I still speak to Sonny occasionally and he’s doing really well this season. Sonny is a no nonsense centre-half and I’m sure he won’t be giving us anything when we face them.

“He’s been in the goals this season as well, so he is a threat we’ll have to be wary of - particularly from set-pieces.

“They are a very good team and have dangers all over the park, we know how tough this game will be.”

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A 3-0 win over basement boys Leyton Orient in their previous home game ended a run of six without a win at the Checkatrade Stadium.

After finally breaking a barren run of results at home, Smith is now hopeful they can get back to their good early season form in front of a home crowd.

He added: “We started really well at home and probably had one of the best records of any team in the league early doors.

“For some reason it became a bit of a struggle but hopefully that last win will help us end this season well at home.”

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Smith has struck six goals this season and admits that’s something he wants to add to his game.

Reds boss Dermot Drummy has used his skipper in a more advanced midfield role in recent matches, so Smith feels more goals could be coming from him.

He said: “It depends on the shape of the team but in some games I’ve been playing further forward.

“I’ve scored six and set-up six so far this season and I’m pleased with that return.

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“I’d like to score a few more goals if that was possible but ultimately it is about the team winning and doing well.

“In these final six games we just want to take each game as it comes and see where that takes us.

“It’s about trying to finish as high up this league as we possibly can and pushing ourselves for next season.”