When it is put to Nathan Smith that he could be tasked with marshalling Alexis Sánchez if the Chile forward makes his Manchester United debut this evening, in the context of a somewhat unorthodox conversation, his response is not altogether surprising. “Obviously we know Sánchez is a top player,” the Yeovil Town defender says. “But on the day, a man is just a man.”
Yeovil’s record Football League appearance holder is an advocate of meditation which, he says, eradicates any negative thoughts and helps him to focus on his game. “There’s always a battle with that inner voice in your head,” Smith, 31, says. “It’s helped me massively with that. And I feel a lot calmer on the pitch. But it also combats everything you do in every day life.”
A retreat to southern India in the summer of 2016 taught him techniques that have since become firmly ingrained in the daily routine of a man who has won two caps for Jamaica. During the ten-day stay at the Vipassana meditation centre, recommended by a friend, Smith undertook a vow of silence, slept on a metal bed with no mattress and he was awoken each morning by a 4am gong before meditating for up to eleven hours a day. Meals were less than straightforward, too, given that he is vegan.
“I just wanted to find out more about myself,” says Smith, who is approaching 300 games for the Somerset club, either side of a three-year hiatus at Chesterfield. “ I always felt there was another side to life other than what we’re being shown.
“The first few days [in India] you felt like getting up and leaving. You can’t talk to anyone, can’t make eye contact, no reading, no writing, no mobile phone. It was like, ‘What do I do?’ Towards the end of it you feel like you’re in touch with nature, the consciousness of the earth. You learn to detach yourself from your emotions.”
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Emotions are unlikely to be kept in check quite so expertly among the 9,000-plus supporters — about a fifth of Yeovil’s population — in attendance at a sell-out Huish Park tonight. Smith is the only player from the League Two club’s starting XI who faced United in the third round in 2015 who will play again tonight.
“The whole environment at Huish Park changed,” Smith, who grew up supporting United, recalls. “The TV people coming down; a full house, which it doesn’t tend to be down here; lining up against players who you see on TV all the time.”
He has adhered to a meat, fish and dairy-free diet for the past four years which, he says, has made him feel lighter and aids recovery. “Growing up around the Rastafarian community, they always talked about eating and living a certain way,” he says. “Initially it was just trying something new. Then it became a health thing. And then you become conscious of the compassion side of things [towards animals]; become more aware.”
Last summer he volunteered in an organic café near his home in north London. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, he has been the butt of one or two jokes from team-mates because of his alternative lifestyle. “Initially there’s going to be the odd little giggle,” Smith says. “But when they hear the actual foundation of it everyone has to respect it. After a period of time they’ve seen what I do, seen the results, and started to ask questions.”
Smith cooks and prepares all his meals at home, including those in advance of away trips and overnight stays in hotels. Given that Yeovil have been ensconced in a Bristol hotel since Tuesday evening, the build-up to tonight’s game has proved quite a logistical challenge. This afternoon, the squad will enjoy a pre-match meal at Tamburino, an Italian restaurant. Smith, however, will prepare something different. “Amaranth and teff porridge, with Brazil nuts, walnuts, then I’ll put some moringa in there, with some almond butter, coconut milk towards the end to give it that creamy effect; some dates, some goji berries, and a bit of maca powder. And that will keep me fuelled for the whole game.”
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Darren Way, Yeovil’s 38-year old manager whose playing career ended after a car crash ten years ago, has asked his players “to dream big, bigger than they have ever dreamt before”.
“If you see our manager and the way he works, everything is about belief and believing that anything can be achieved,” Smith says. “When we go out on that pitch it’s a level playing field. The boys believe that we can go out and do a job.”