Holt came late to professional football, having had a spell in the Army Catering Corps as a chef and played for the British Army team prior to joining Celtic. He did not play for the Bhoys first team and moved on to Stoke City. After a brief stay, Holt returned to his boyhood favourites, Kilmarnock, where he excelled in the Ayrshire team's most consistent period of success since the 1960s. He set up home in his place of birth with his wife in the Bourtreehill part of Irvine. Despite his excellent form with Kilmarnock, international recognition proved elusive, and Holt briefly explored the option of playing for Canada in 1998. However, it eventually emerged Holt wasn't eligible for Canada, and Holt gained his first Scotland cap a year later. In 2001, Norwich City paid £135,000 for Holt. He was voted Norwich City player of the year in 2001-02, when he also collected a number of fans' awards, including the Capital Canaries Player of the Season trophy. That season, Holt was a member of the Norwich team that reached the final of the Division One play-offs, losing on penalties to Birmingham City Holt played in Division One for his first three seasons with the club and helped them win promotion to the Premier League in 2004. Holt left Norwich to join Nottingham Forest in 2005, where he spent two years before being released at the end of the 2006-07 season. At Forest he scored three times, with goals against Weymouth in the FA Cup, Cheltenham in the league and Yeovil in the second leg of the 2007 League One play off semi final. He subsequently signed for League Two side Wycombe Wanderers on 12 July 2007. He signed a 1-year extension until July 2010 on 17 January 2009. On 28 March 2009 he lobbed Luke Daniels in the League Two match against Shrewsbury Town to score the third goal of his Wycombe Wanderers career. For the 2009/10 season he left Wycombe Wanderers to join former manager Paul Lambert at Colchester United as a player coach. However, when Lambert left for Norwich City after only three game of the season, his contract was terminated without him making a single appearance for the club. On 6 October 2009 he signed for Isthmian League club Lowestoft Town.
International career
Holt made his Scotland debut on 2 September 2000 as an 89th-minute substitute against Latvia in a match that Scotland won 1-0. He kept his place in the squad for the next year and a half before he was omitted from after a friendly against France that ended in a 5-0 defeat for Scotland in March 2002. He was not capped again for two years when his final cap came in a 1-1 draw against Moldova in October 2004. His only international goal came in a 4-1 win over Trinidad & Tobago in 2004.
Coaching career
In July 2010, he returned to Norwich City as assistant Academy manager. He was responsible for the coaching of City's under-12 to under-16 age groups as well as assisting the current coaching staff with reserve team matters. Holt was appointed manager of Scottish First Division club Falkirk on 3 April 2013. Upon becoming the new manager of Falkirk, Holt expressed has delight at returning to a club that gave him one of the best days of his career'. Holt also credits former Norwich City manager and compatriot, Paul Lambert for helping him. Holt left Falkirk in June 2014 to take a position at Norwich City as a first-team coach. Holt left Norwich by mutual consent after the 2015–16 season. In August 2018, he was appointed head coach of Scottish Premiership club Livingston, replacing former Scotland teammate Kenny Miller in the role. After guiding the relegation favourites to an impressive ninth-place finish on their return to the Premiership, he was forced to take a temporary leave of absence from his role in August 2019 when he overexerted in a gym session and contracted rhabdomyolysis, causing his blood levels to rise to dangerous levels and his skeletal muscle to begin breaking down. The 2019-20 season provided further success for Holt and Livi, as the Lions secured fifth place in the Premiership. It was the club's second-highest ever league finish, and Holt was nominated for the Scottish Football Writers’ Association ‘Manager of the Year Award’. Holt also claimed the SPFL Manager of the Month award for September 2018 and January 2020.
