Kirsty Smith Joins Nottingham Forest on a 2-year Deal
- Abbie Murphy
- Jul 17
- 2 min read
Nottingham Forest Women have confirmed the signing of Kirsty Smith, ahead of their first campaign in WSL 2, the division formerly known as the Women’s Championship. Smith arrives on a free transfer, following the conclusion of her contract with West Ham United, bringing with her over a decade of top-level experience, both in Scotland and England.
Born in Dalkeith, Smith began her footballing journey at youth level with Musselburgh Windsor before joining Hibernian at the age of 13. She would go on to spend over ten years with the Edinburgh-based side, establishing herself as one of the most consistent full-backs in the Scottish Women’s Premier League.
During her time with the Hibs, Smith helped the club lift multiple domestic trophies. She played a key role in securing back-to-back Scottish Cup and League Cup doubles in 2016 and 2017, whilst also finishing as league runners-up on four occasions. Her performances earned her widespread recognition and a first call-up to the senior Scotland squad in 2014.
In 2018, Smith made the switch to England, joining Manchester United in their debut season. She featured regularly throughout the 2018/19 campaign as United stormed to the FA Women’s Championship title and secured promotion to the topflight at the first time of asking. Across her four-year stay in Manchester, she made around 40 appearances in all competitions, contributing both defensively and in attack, as an overlapping full-back.
Following her departure from United, the Scotland international joined West Ham United in the summer of 2022. During her first season with the Hammers, she featured in all 22 league fixtures and appeared in every match across the FA Cup and League cup. Despite high expectations, the season proved inconsistent, leaving West Ham finishing the season eighth in the WSL, managing just four clean sheets. In 2023, the Hammers fell under the new eye of Rehanne Skinner, a season in which Smith would flourish. Smith scored her first WSL goal in a 2-0 victory against Brighton in 2023, before being ruled out of the first four fixtures of the 2024/25 season with a shoulder injury. In January 2025, she made her 50th league appearance for the club before adding a second goal later that month with a long-range strike in a League Cup quarter-final win against Tottenham.
On the international stage, Smith made her senior debut for Scotland in 2014 during a World Cup play-off against the Netherlands. Since then, she has earned over 60 caps for her country and was part of the squad that represented Scotland in the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2019; their first appearance at the tournament.
Her most recent international outings include a strong qualifying campaign for the 2025 UEFA Women’s EURO’s, where she contributed to eight clean sheets in ten matches, further underlining her defensive credentials.
Nottingham Forest Women head coach, Carly Davies, said: “We are delighted to bring a player of Kirsty’s calibre and experience into the squad. Her versatility, experience, and work ethic will be invaluable as we continue to build a competitive and ambitious squad. I’m really looking forward to working with Kirsty in the coming season.”
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