George Smith (born 14 July 1980) is a retired Australian

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player. He was a flanker for

Bristol Bears Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...

, though he is more known for his 12 years (2000–10,13) at the

ACT Brumbies The ACT Brumbies (known from 2005–2022 as simply the Brumbies) is an Australian professional rugby union team based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), The team competes in Super Rugby and named for the brumby, feral horses whi ...

Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Building on various Southern Hem ...

, earning 142 caps. He made his test debut in 2000 against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in Paris and earning 111

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

for

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, 110 before retiring from international rugby on 5 February 2010 and one final cap against the

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...

on 6 July 2013. He is the second most capped Wallaby forward behind

Nathan Sharpe Nathan Sharpe (born 26 February 1978) is a retired professional Australian rugby union player. He began his rugby career at the Queensland Reds in 1999 before joining the newly created Western Force in 2006, where he captained the club until h ...

, and is the second most capped flanker in rugby union behind

Richie McCaw Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captained the national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 test matches, and won two Rugby World Cups. He has won the World Rugby ...

Early life and junior career

Smith was born in Manly,

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

. He began playing rugby with the Manly Roos/Warringah Roos, before moving on to play the majority of his junior career with the Manly Vikings, and

Tupou College Tupou College is a Methodist boys' secondary boarding school in Toloa on the island of Tongatapu, Tonga. It is located on the Eastern District of Tongatapu near the village of Malapo. The school is owned by the Free Weslyan Church of Tonga. Estab ...

in Tonga, playing a year above his age group in the Sydney junior rugby competition. Once that team had reached its age limit (18 years old) and moved on to the colts competition, Smith remained in the Sydney junior rugby competition, this time lining up in his correct age group for the Seaforth-Balgowlah Raiders. He then progressed to playing in the Manly 1st grade Colts side who also won a premiership in 1999. It was during that season that Smith made his first grade debut at Nepean Rugby Park against The Penrith Emus. During his junior career he was selected for many representative teams, including Manly, Sydney, Northern Zone, NSW, and Australian Under 16s. Smith also had a successful school career, first at Balgowlah Boys High School, then at Cromer High School, where, along with Tongan international John Payne, he won the Australian Schools Championship. He played for the Australian Schoolboys team in 1998.

Senior career

Brumbies and Australia: 2000–2010

He was signed to the

by Eddie Jones in 1999. He made his Super 12 debut in just his first year of professional rugby in 2000, playing against the

Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimorp ...

, and he scored a try in the Brumbies Super 12 final loss to the Canterbury Crusaders. In a remarkable year, Smith was also capped for the first time in the Wallabies end of season tour against France. Smith was a key player for the

Wallabies A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same taxonomic family as kangaroos and so ...

from 2000–09. He was often voted Players' Player of the Year, awarded for fair-play by his teammates and officials. He has recently been chosen as a member of the

Wallaby Team of the Decade To celebrate 10 years of professional rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it ...

, a remarkable feat considering his age and one of only three current players picked. In 2002, he was the first recipient of the

John Eales Medal The John Eales Medal is awarded to honour the best Australian rugby union player each year. The medal, which was launched in 2002, is jointly awarded each year by the Australian Rugby Union and the Rugby Union Players Association. The medal is ...

, awarded by the

Australian Rugby Union Rugby Australia Ltd, previously named the Australian Rugby Union Limited and Australian Rugby Football Union Limited, is an Australian company operating the premier rugby union competition in Australia and teams. It has its origins in 1949. It ...

and the Rugby Union Players' Association to their Player of the Year. He won Australian Super 14 Player of the Year four years in a row between

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

and

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

. In 2007 the breakdown specialist capped off another remarkable season claiming awards including: the Brett Robinson Award as the Brumbies' Players' Player for the fifth consecutive year; Super 14 Player of the Year; and the Rugby Union Players' Association 'Rugby Medal for Excellence'. These recognitions underlined his position as one of rugby's most respected players, reinforced further when he became the Wallabies 75th captain, against Canada at the

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 2 ...

. 2008 was a big year for Smith. He captained the

Brumbies The ACT Brumbies (known from 2005–2022 as simply the Brumbies) is an Australian professional rugby union team based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT), The team competes in Super Rugby and named for the brumby, feral horses whi ...

and the Wallabies and became the first player to win the ''John Eales Medal'', twice. In addition, Smith won the "Super 14 Player of the Year Award", for the third consecutive year and the Brett Robinson Award as the Brumbies' Players' Player of the year for the sixth consecutive year. He also reached a personal milestone during the season, when he made his 100th

appearance against the Cheetahs in round six. In a memorable double for the Smith family, George's younger brother, Brumbies teammate Tyrone, was named rookie of the year. In the international arena, the older Smith also became both the most capped flanker and the most capped forward – the latter being previously held by

John Eales John Eales AM (born 27 June 1970) is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby. In 1999, he became one of the first players to win multiple Rugby World Cups. Early life Eales ...

. On 5 February 2010, Smith announced his retirement from international rugby.

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

was expected to be his last in

. Smith celebrated with the achievement of his 9th Brumbies Players' Player of the Year, with eight of those awards being consecutive.

Toulon, Stade Français and Suntory: 2011–2013

In June 2010, Smith signed a one-year contract with French Top 14 club

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

. His RC Toulonnais teammates included former Highlander and

All Black The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, ...

prop

Carl Hayman Carl Joseph Hayman (born 14 November 1979) is a retired New Zealand rugby union footballer who played at tighthead prop. Hayman has previously played for the Highlanders in Super Rugby, Otago in the NPC, and Newcastle Falcons in the English P ...

, and former Brumbies' scrum-half

Matt Henjak Matt Henjak (born 25 November 1981) is an Australian former professional rugby union player. He played scrum-half for the Australian national team. Henjak, of Croatian ancestry, is the nephew of former rugby league half-back and former Brisban ...

. Later in 2010 he was selected in the

French Barbarians The Barbarian Rugby Club, more commonly known as the French Barbarians, is a rugby union team formed in 1979 and based in France. It was founded as an amateur invitational team modeled on the Barbarian F.C. From the start of the 2017–18 season, ...

to play at blindside flanker (number 6) against

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

. Smith played for the Australia XV team alongside fellow Tongan, Lisiate Tafa, in the Southern Hemisphere Charity Fundraiser in March 2011 against the Pacific Barbarians. In the following month Smith become the highest paid Australian rugby player by signing with Japanese club,

Suntory Sungoliath Tokyo Sungoliath (formerly known as Suntory Sungoliath) is owned by the Suntory beverage company and is one of the Japanese rugby union teams in the Top League. The team is based in Fuchū, Tokyo, as is their local rival Toshiba Brave Lupus. The ...

, on a $3.3 million three-year deal. He joined

Stade Français Stade Français Paris Rugby () is a French professional rugby union club based in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The club plays in the Top 14 domestic league in France and is one of the most successful French clubs of the modern era. The ...

in 2012 on a short-term contract for the end of their

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

and

European Challenge Cup The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup. From its inception i ...

seasons.

Brumbies and Lions Series: 2013

In early 2013 the Brumbies announced that Smith would return to Australia on a short term contract for the

2013 Super Rugby season The 2013 Super Rugby season was the third season of the new 15-team format for the Super Rugby competition involving teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The tournament was won by the Chiefs, who defeated the Canberra-based Brumb ...

. This followed Ita Vaea's season-ending injury. Smith gained the approval of his Japanese club Sungoliath for his 12-week stint back in Australia. Smith was recalled to the Australian squad in June that year for the series against the

, after recovering from a knee injury. After being overlooked for the second test, Smith was named as the starting open side flanker for the third and deciding test in Sydney. It was his first test since retiring from international rugby in February 2010 and broke

Colin Meads Sir Colin Earl Meads (3 June 1936 – 20 August 2017) was a New Zealand rugby union player. He played 55 test matches (133 games), most frequently in the lock forward position, for New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks, from 1957 until 19 ...

' record of 4382 days between his first test against the Lions, and his last.

Lyon and Wasps: 2014–2016

After leaving French club

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

on their relegation to the

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

, Smith made a move to England to sign for

Wasps A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. T ...

in the

Aviva Premiership Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

from the 2015–16 season. During his season with Wasps, Smith won a number of awards; including Wasps' Players' Player of the Year, Wasps' Player of the Year,

Players' Player of the Year and Green Flag Forward of the Season. During his spell in England, Smith was also involved in the

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

coaching setup during the

2016 Six Nations Championship The 2016 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2016 RBS 6 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by The Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 17th series of the Six Nations Championship, the annual northern hemisphere rugby union championship. I ...

Queensland Reds and Suntory: 2016–2018

In mid 2016 it was confirmed that Smith would leave Wasps in England to return to Japanese club

, and that he would also play for the Queensland Reds in the 2017 and 2018

seasons. On 13 July 2018, Smith played his final home game for Queensland Reds, having initially been ruled out with a knee injury. This was his final professional game in Australia.

Bristol: 2018–2019

Smith joined the

in England for their 2018–19

Premiership Rugby Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

season. He retired from professional rugby at the end of that season.

Personal life

Smith, who is of

n background, is the older brother of fellow

player and Tongan rugby league international Tyrone Smith. He was easily recognised on the field by his dreadlocked hair style until late 2006 – when he decided to sell his dreadlocks for charity. They were given to a charity for younger people with cancer. Smith was the face of the Australian version of

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

Rugby 2005 ''Rugby 2005'' is a game in the Rugby series by EA Sports. The game allows players to play as many Rugby nations, both major and minor, and includes many tournaments, such as the Rugby World Cup, the Tri Nations, the Six Nations, and the Supe ...

''. He was made a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in 2012.

References

External links

Stats
on It's rugby

ESPNscrum Profile

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, George 1980 births Australian rugby union players Australian people of Tongan descent Australia international rugby union players Australian rugby union captains Rugby union flankers ACT Brumbies players Stade Français players Tokyo Sungoliath players Lyon OU players World Rugby Awards winners Members of the Order of Australia RC Toulonnais players Australian expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in France Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Australian expatriate sportspeople in Japan Australian expatriate sportspeople in France Rugby union players from Sydney Living people People from Manly, New South Wales Wasps RFC players Bristol Bears players