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Luke Smith (rugby union)

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Luke Smith
Birth nameLuke Atholl Smith
Date of birth(1971-02-09)9 February 1971
Place of birthEast London, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Date of death16 July 2021(2021-07-16) (aged 50)
Place of deathEast London, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Height175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight84 kg (13 st 3 lb; 185 lb)[1]
SchoolDale College Boys' High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fly-half
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1998–99 Glasgow Warriors 5 (27)
1999–2000 Racing 92 ()
2000 Rotherham 5 (61)
2001–02 Saracens 17 (194)
Provincial / State sides
Years Team Apps (Points)
Eastern Province ()
Blue Bulls ()
Sharks (Currie Cup) ()
1998 Border Bulldogs ()
Coaching career
Years Team
2013–present Dale College Boys' High School

Luke Smith (born 9 February 1971 in East London, Eastern Cape, South Africa – died 16 July 2021) was a professional rugby union player. He played at fly-half for Glasgow Caledonians, now Glasgow Warriors; as well as Racing 92 and Saracens among others.

He signed for Glasgow in 1998 from Border Bulldogs in South Africa.[2] He was Scottish-qualified as his grandmother, Rachel Watson, was from Edinburgh.

He made the move in the hope of representing Scotland. He stated: "After being sidelined for two years because of a serious knee injury, I made up my mind to continue my career in Europe. When I told my agent about my family background, he set about getting me fixed up with a Scottish team. The ultimate goal for any player is to play at international level and as soon as I found out that I could be eligible for Scotland, my sights were set."[3]

However, injury prevented him from receiving Scotland 'A'[4] or Scotland 'B' honours[5] and the hope of a Scotland career stalled. He did however represent a combined Scottish Districts side.[6][7][8]

He played two matches in the Heineken Cup for Glasgow; against US Colomiers[9][10] and Pontypridd.[11] He also played in the Scottish Inter-District Championship and in that season's WRU Challenge Cup.[12]

He also played for Glasgow in friendlies against touring international sides South Africa[13] and the Māori All Blacks[14] and Fiji.[15]

After playing for Glasgow, Smith moved to Racing 92 and then Rotherham.[16] He played just 5 matches for Rotherham before signing for Saracens.[1]

Smith also played for Mirano Rugby in Italy; and Birmingham & Solihull, Coventry and Esher in England.[5]

Schooled at Selborne College in East London and Dale College Boys' High School in King William's Town, South Africa, Smith returned to his former school as rugby coach.[5]

Smith died suddenly on 16 July 2021.[17]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Luke Smith – Rugby Union – Players and Officials". ESPN scrum.
  2. ^ "Caledonians in line for a South African boost". The Herald. Glasgow.
  3. ^ "Luke here – and his target is to gain a Scotland place Caledonians' South African signing could have a chance to wear the dark blue". The Herald. Glasgow.
  4. ^ "Stand-off crisis results in the return of Donaldson". The Herald. Glasgow.
  5. ^ a b c "Rugby365-Dale's new coach".
  6. ^ "Late show from Craig seals impressive win Combined Districts perform well despite injuries and sickness for players". The Herald. Glasgow.
  7. ^ "Simpson sends message as Districts score victory". The Herald. Glasgow.
  8. ^ "Wainwright may retire".
  9. ^ "Match Centre – Heineken Cup – ERC – Official Website". ercrugby.com.
  10. ^ "Search Results".
  11. ^ "Heineken Cup : Player profile". Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
  12. ^ "Match centre". scarlets.co.uk.
  13. ^ "HUBCAT: Record".
  14. ^ "Defeat but no disgrace for Glasgow's Reds". The Herald. Glasgow.
  15. ^ "Reds give a green light for Scotland". The Herald. Glasgow.
  16. ^ "Vile milestone is bad news for Rotherham". ESPN scrum.
  17. ^ Comfort, Edem (17 July 2021). "Luke Smith Rugby Death – Obituary | Luke Smith Has Died". Inside Eko. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
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