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

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References

  1. 1 2 "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. 1 2 3 "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. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
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