Archibald Smith (born 19 July 1995) is a former

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who played for the Brisbane Lions in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

(AFL).

Early life

Smith was born in Brisbane on 19 July 1995, the son of former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

and NBL basketball player

Andre Moore Andre M. Moore (born July 2, 1964), is a retired American-Australian professional basketball player. As a 6 ft 9 in (205 cm) power forward, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Denv ...

. Smith himself played junior basketball at an elite level and was courted by multiple Division One colleges in the United States before being scouted by AFL recruiters at the age of 17. Despite having no prior

experience, Smith drew interest from recruiters due to his supreme athleticism for his size. He attended

St Laurence's College , motto_translation = To do and to teach , type = Independent primary and secondary school , religion = Catholicism , denomination = Congregation of Christian Brothers , streetaddress ...

in South Brisbane throughout his teenage years.

Football career

Smith was drafted by the Brisbane Lions with their third selection and sixty-ninth overall in the 2014 rookie draft as an Academy selection. He made his debut against in round 19, 2016 in a near best-on-ground performance, gathering 19 disposals and 30 hit outs at the Gabba. While Smith spent eight years with Brisbane, only three of those were on the senior list, and he was starved for opportunities at the highest level. Playing mostly for Brisbane's reserve team in this time, Smith won three premierships with the Lions in the North East Australian Football League (NEAFL) in 2013, 2017 and 2019. Following the win over Southport in the 2019 NEAFL grand final, he became the first (and subsequently only) player to win three flags at NEAFL level.

Personal life

Smith is one of 6 children, with siblings Gemma, Sebastian, Isaac, Abib and Violet. In November 2020, Archie's brother, Sebastian, died by suicide at the age of 21. Subsequently, before every game, Smith wrote his late brother's name on his wrist as a motivational tribute. Smith also advocated for suicide prevention in his brother's memory as an ambassador for Lifeline Australia. Smith announced his retirement from the AFL at the end of the 2021 season, citing a desire to prioritise mental well-being and family. He married his longtime partner Sophie in October 2021, and the couple welcomed their first child, Montgomery, in April 2022.

External links

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References

1995 births Living people Australian people of African-American descent Brisbane Lions players Mount Gravatt Football Club players Australian rules footballers from Queensland {{AFL-bio-1990s-stub