Michael Smith is a 22-year-old striker from Wallsend who arrived at The Valley in the summer of 2011.

Originally signed on a two-year contract, the deal was extended by a further year last summer.

Smith came on as an 88th minute substitute for Jason Euell in the FA Cup tie at Halifax in his first season, and played 106 minutes of the opening fixture of the 2012/13 season. That game was a Capital One Cup match with Leyton Orient at The Valley.

Smith scored stacks of goals for the club’s Under-21 team, including four against Tonbridge Angels in the final of the 2012/13 Kent Senior Cup.

He had various loan spells during his time at The Valley, Accrington – where he scored a hat-trick on his debut – Newport County, Colchester and AFC Wimbledon were all clubs Smith made loan appearances for.

In total, he made 40 league starts, plus a further 7 appearances as a substitute, scoring 19 goals, during his temporary stints away from The Valley.

Probably his most productive spell was the first part of this season at Wimbledon. Smith netted 10 goals in 24 league appearances and the Dons were keen to extend his stay at Kingsmeadow.

Chris Powell decided to bring Smith back home in January so that he could monitor his progress. He was sold later that month to Swindon in a deal that it is thought could be worth up to £200,000 to the club.

Smith started off well at the County Ground, then went through a barren spell before finishing the season well. He ended up with a record of 8 goals from his 20 starts for Swindon.

At 6’4″, Smith is a real physical presence and, as his record shows, he can score goals at League One and League Two level. Whether he could do it at Championship level is subject to conjecture but surely he should have been given a chance?

Clearly, Chris Powell did not think he would but Smith did seem a perfect fit for Roland Duchatelet’s young and hungry template. It surprised many that the new owner did not persevere a little longer. The question is why was a seemingly talented player allowed to leave without being given the chance to show what he could do?

The answer, it seems, lies on the training field. Smith is one of those players who performs well in matches but fails to impress in training.

To get into most teams, a player has to prove his worth to the manager in the confines of the training ground. This is especially true when the manager is as naturally cautious as Chris Powell.

Without the evidence of his own eyes, it was difficult for Powell to take a chance with Smith. The striker certainly worked hard enough but he just did not impress in training. Put him on a pitch in a match situation on a Saturday afternoon though, and you will see an entirely different player.

Will Smith come back to haunt Charlton? Only time will tell.