Martin Smith joined Darlington ahead of the 2006/07 season. Sunderland born Smith started his career on Wearside. He scored scoring twenty-eight times in 107 starts for the North East giants in a seven year spell. He moved to Sheffield United and scored fifteen times in 30 starts for the Blades, before the Terriers swooped for him.

Smith went on to score thirty goals in seventy-five starts, including seventeen during the 2002/2003 as the Terriers were relegated. Smith signed for Northampton from Huddersfield Town on the 1st of July 2003 after being chased for a few months by then manager Martin Wilkinson. Smith started as a forward but in recent seasons however Smith has been used as a midfielder but continued to regularly find the net for Northampton during their promotion from League Two during the 2005/06 season.

At the end of the season then Northampton Town manager Colin Calderwood left for Nottingham Forest. Smith enjoyed a good relationship with Calderwood and this promoted him to return to the North East. Northampton appointed John Gorman and he worked hard to try and keep Smith at the Sixfields Stadium but Hodgson eventually got his man.