Gary Naysmith facts for kids

Gary Andrew Naysmith (born 16 November 1978) is a Scottish football coach and a former player. He is currently the manager of Scottish League One team Stenhousemuir.

Naysmith played as a left-back or left-winger. He started his professional career with Hearts. Later, he moved to England to play for Premier League club Everton, where he stayed for seven seasons. Gary Naysmith played 46 times for the Scotland national team between 2000 and 2009. After playing for Sheffield United and Huddersfield Town, Naysmith returned to Scotland with Aberdeen.

In 2013, Naysmith joined East Fife as a player. He then became their player-manager in December of that year. He later managed Championship club Queen of the South from 2016 to 2019. He was appointed manager of Edinburgh City in March 2021. In January 2023, Naysmith became the manager of Stenhousemuir. He led them to win the Scottish League Two title in the 2023/24 season.

Playing Career: Gary Naysmith's Journey on the Field

Club Football: From Hearts to East Fife

Heart of Midlothian (Hearts)

Gary Naysmith began his senior career with Hearts. He joined them from a local youth team. He made his first professional appearance at just 17 years old. This was in a League Cup match against Celtic. Even though Hearts had many defenders missing, they won the game 1–0. Gary was praised for his strong performance.

Within a year, he became the main left-back for the team. In 1998, he helped Hearts win the Scottish Cup. This was their first major trophy in 36 years! That same season, he was named the Scottish PFA Young Player of the Year.

In February 2000, Gary showed his skill in a game against Celtic. Hearts were losing 2–0 but came back to win 3–2. Gary scored a fantastic goal to tie the game. Because he was such a valuable player, other clubs became interested in him. In October 2000, Everton offered £1.7 million for him, and he moved to England.

Everton

At Everton, Gary quickly became a regular player. Fans even nicknamed him "El Blanco Carlos" after the famous Brazilian player, Roberto Carlos. He played 152 games for Everton and scored six goals. However, his time at Everton was sometimes interrupted by injuries.

In 2005, a long-term ankle injury meant he lost his regular spot in the team. But he worked hard to recover. In the 2006–07 season, he returned to the starting lineup. On 5 May 2007, Gary scored a goal in a 3–0 win against Portsmouth. This win helped Everton qualify for European competitions. He played over 130 Premier League games for Everton. In July 2007, he left the club to join Sheffield United.

Sheffield United

Gary Naysmith joined Sheffield United in July 2007. He signed a three-year contract. He quickly became the first-choice left-back for the team. In his first season, he played 42 games.

He continued to be a key player in the 2008–09 season, playing 43 games. However, he suffered a serious knee injury towards the end of that season. This injury meant he missed most of the 2009–10 season. He returned to play in the final two games of that season.

Huddersfield Town

In June 2010, Gary Naysmith signed a two-year deal with Huddersfield Town. He chose Huddersfield even though he had offers from Premier League clubs. He wanted to play regularly.

He made his debut for Huddersfield on 7 August 2010. However, in his second game, he was sent off. Soon after, he got a toe injury that kept him out for five months. Gary left Huddersfield in June 2012 when his contract ended.

Aberdeen

In July 2012, Gary Naysmith returned to Scotland to train with Aberdeen. After playing well in trial games, he signed a one-year contract on 1 August. He played his first game for Aberdeen against SPL champions Celtic. On 13 May 2013, it was announced that his contract would not be extended.

East Fife

In the summer of 2013, Gary joined East Fife, a part-time club. On 31 October 2013, he agreed to stay with them as a player-assistant manager. When the manager left, Gary became the caretaker manager. On 18 December, he was officially appointed as the manager.

International Career: Playing for Scotland

Gary Naysmith played for Scotland at different levels, including the under-21 team and the main national team. He made his first appearance for the senior Scotland team in May 2000. This was in a 2–1 win against the Republic of Ireland. He went on to play 46 games for Scotland until 2009.

He scored his only international goal in 2002. It was during a game against Iceland in the UEFA Euro 2004 qualification matches. He scored the second goal in a 2–0 win with a great shot from outside the penalty area.

Coaching Career: Leading Teams to Success

East Fife

Gary Naysmith became the player-manager of East Fife in December 2013. He spent three and a half seasons leading the team. In December 2016, he left East Fife to become the new manager of Scottish Championship club Queen of the South. This move allowed him to become a full-time manager.

Queen of the South

Gary Naysmith signed with Queen of the South on 1 December 2016. After becoming manager, he decided to stop playing football himself. In January 2019, he was named Scottish Championship Manager of the Month. On 4 May 2019, he left the club after they finished in a relegation play-off spot.

Edinburgh City

In March 2021, Naysmith was appointed manager of Scottish League Two club Edinburgh City. He was in charge for about a year before being sacked in March 2022.

Stenhousemuir

On 3 January 2023, Gary Naysmith became the new manager of Scottish League Two team Stenhousemuir. In his first full season, he led Stenhousemuir to win the Scottish League Two title. This was the club's first-ever title in 140 years!

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Result	Competition
1.	12 October 2002	Laugardalsvöllur Reykjavík, Iceland	Iceland	2–0	UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying

Managerial record

As of match played 25 January 2025

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
				G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
East Fife		28 November 2013	3 December 2016	&&&&&&&&&&&&0132.&&&&&0132	&&&&&&&&&&&&&050.&&&&&050	&&&&&&&&&&&&&028.&&&&&028	&&&&&&&&&&&&&054.&&&&&054	&&&&&&&&&&&&0188.&&&&&0188	&&&&&&&&&&&&0183.&&&&&0183	+5	&&&&&&&&&&&&&037.88000037.88
Queen of the South		3 December 2016	4 May 2019	&&&&&&&&&&&&0117.&&&&&0117	&&&&&&&&&&&&&041.&&&&&041	&&&&&&&&&&&&&034.&&&&&034	&&&&&&&&&&&&&042.&&&&&042	&&&&&&&&&&&&0183.&&&&&0183	&&&&&&&&&&&&0163.&&&&&0163	+20	&&&&&&&&&&&&&035.&4000035.04
Edinburgh City		9 March 2021	17 March 2022	&&&&&&&&&&&&&056.&&&&&056	&&&&&&&&&&&&&023.&&&&&023	&&&&&&&&&&&&&013.&&&&&013	&&&&&&&&&&&&&020.&&&&&020	&&&&&&&&&&&&&072.&&&&&072	&&&&&&&&&&&&&071.&&&&&071	+1	&&&&&&&&&&&&&041.&7000041.07
Stenhousemuir		3 January 2023		&&&&&&&&&&&&&092.&&&&&092	&&&&&&&&&&&&&037.&&&&&037	&&&&&&&&&&&&&025.&&&&&025	&&&&&&&&&&&&&030.&&&&&030	&&&&&&&&&&&&0112.&&&&&0112	&&&&&&&&&&&&0106.&&&&&0106	+6	&&&&&&&&&&&&&040.22000040.22
Total				&&&&&&&&&&&&0397.&&&&&0397	&&&&&&&&&&&&0150.&&&&&0150	&&&&&&&&&&&&0100.&&&&&0100	&&&&&&&&&&&&0147.&&&&&0147	&&&&&&&&&&&&0554.&&&&&0554	&&&&&&&&&&&&0521.&&&&&0521	+33	&&&&&&&&&&&&&037.78000037.78

• Edinburgh City statistics include forfeit win over Falkirk in the Scottish League Cup on 21 July 2021.
• Initially caretaker of East Fife and appointed permanently on 18 December 2013.

Honours

Player

Heart of Midlothian

• Scottish Cup: 1997–98

Huddersfield Town

• Football League One play-offs: 2012

East Fife

• Scottish League Two: 2015–16

Scotland

• Kirin Cup: 2006

Manager

East Fife

• Scottish League Two: 2015–16

Stenhousemuir

• Scottish League Two: 2023–24

See also

In Spanish: Gary Naysmith para niños