Aaron Smith
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Bumping an older thread..
Aaron Smith is about to play his last home game for the Highlanders.
The ODT has a few articles about him today. Here's the ones that they didn't put behind a paywall
Aaron Smith: The big interview
Aaron Smith opens up on family, rugby influences and his love for the Highlanders in a wide-ranging interview with Rugby Chat host Paul Dwyer. The...
Nuggie’s contribution makes him stand out among peers
He's had lots of team-mates and several coaches, but Aaron Smith has known only one Highlanders boss. We asked chief executive Roger Clark to offer...
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i think he truly will go down as one of the greats, his commitment and attitude have been a huge part of NZ rugby over the last 10-12 years
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@Kiwiwomble said in Aaron Smith:
i think he truly will go down as one of the greats, his commitment and attitude have been a huge part of NZ rugby over the last 10-12 years
And you could sign an afterdavid confirming that.
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He did a cool podcast with Issac John on the Ice Project recently for anyone interested.
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@Kiwiwomble said in Aaron Smith:
i think he truly will go down as one of the greats, his commitment and attitude have been a huge part of NZ rugby over the last 10-12 years
I think he could have been up there with Carter, McCaw etc but for his toilet cubicle exploits - which seemed to hit him quite hard for a season or two.
Probably, along with peak Sid Going & Loveridge, the best AB halfback I've seen. Hugely committed to the team, almost zero brain-farts, brave and with all the skills in the world - and head and shoulders above any other AB 9 in his era.
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Thank you Aaron Smith
Awesome awesome awesome
One last time in France, we got this -
@Victor-Meldrew said in Aaron Smith:
@Kiwiwomble said in Aaron Smith:
i think he truly will go down as one of the greats, his commitment and attitude have been a huge part of NZ rugby over the last 10-12 years
I think he could have been up there with Carter, McCaw etc but for his toilet cubicle exploits - which seemed to hit him quite hard for a season or two.
Probably, along with peak Sid Going & Loveridge, the best AB halfback I've seen. Hugely committed to the team, almost zero brain-farts, brave and with all the skills in the world - and head and shoulders above any other AB 9 in his era.
What I loved is that he redefined the 9 role, from the trend to go towards the Justin Marshall physical halfback with a compromised pass, to someone who just had a beautifully executed core skill. Peak Smith with his ability to get the ball out in space was insane. Kept the Highlanders in so many games, opened up attack in outer channels, just awesome.
Had it all; the pass, the success, the longevity. Still get a chubby with some of the consistently fast, accurate passing he throws.
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for me, this passage always highlights not just how good he was/is, but how important he was to the way we were playing, as above, a more robust 4th flanker type 9, and we lose this test, he has so many touches in this.
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Watching that video noticing one bad pass (only) and oh how I miss Ben Smith in the ABs! Always made metres! Even Owen Franks made 1 or 2!
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Aaron Smith:
Probably, along with peak Sid Going & Loveridge, the best AB halfback I've seen
Smith and Loveridge
Bachop and Laidlaw
Then the more flawed #9's
Going and Marshall -
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@KiwiMurph ....now all i want for xmas is a news story about Aaron smith being found cuddling the bledisloe cup on st kilda beach the next morning
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@Kiwiwomble with the RWC one sitting on his towel haha
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And his running. Never overdid it but a real weapon when he did.
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Aaron Smith:
And his running. Never overdid it but a real weapon when he did.
Halfbacks only need to run once or twice a match to keep defenses honest.
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@taniwharugby said in Aaron Smith:
for me, this passage always highlights not just how good he was/is, but how important he was to the way we were playing, as above, a more robust 4th flanker type 9, and we lose this test, he has so many touches in this.
That video isn't quite as enjoyable to watch as it used to be, for some reason.
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@dogmeat said in Aaron Smith:
@Victor-Meldrew said in Aaron Smith:
Probably, along with peak Sid Going & Loveridge, the best AB halfback I've seen
Smith and Loveridge
Bachop and Laidlaw
Then the more flawed #9's
Going and MarshallHistory has been kind to Bachop. He was one of my favourite players but he was pretty bloody erratic. I remember him copping a lot of shit for it too.
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@nzzp said in Aaron Smith:
@Victor-Meldrew said in Aaron Smith:
@Kiwiwomble said in Aaron Smith:
i think he truly will go down as one of the greats, his commitment and attitude have been a huge part of NZ rugby over the last 10-12 years
I think he could have been up there with Carter, McCaw etc but for his toilet cubicle exploits - which seemed to hit him quite hard for a season or two.
Probably, along with peak Sid Going & Loveridge, the best AB halfback I've seen. Hugely committed to the team, almost zero brain-farts, brave and with all the skills in the world - and head and shoulders above any other AB 9 in his era.
What I loved is that he redefined the 9 role, from the trend to go towards the Justin Marshall physical halfback with a compromised pass, to someone who just had a beautifully executed core skill. Peak Smith with his ability to get the ball out in space was insane. Kept the Highlanders in so many games, opened up attack in outer channels, just awesome.
Had it all; the pass, the success, the longevity. Still get a chubby with some of the consistently fast, accurate passing he throws.
Much like Nonu, that handling and vision wasn't something he came to the table with. He clearly worked unbelievably hard to elevate himself to a level above everyone else.
I remember when he first turned up at super rugby and he just looked like an elite touch player, massive step and acceleration, fairly decent short pass.
