Full name Benjamin Robert Smith
Born
June 1, 1986, Dunedin
Current age 38 years 24 days
Major teams Bay of Plenty, Highlanders, Otago, Pau, New Zealand
Position Utility back
Height
6 ft 2 in
Weight 213 lb
|
Span | Mat | Start | Sub | Pts | Tries | Conv | Pens | Drop | Won | Lost | Draw | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
All Tests | 2009-2019 | 84 | 72 | 12 | 195 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 7 | 3 | 89.88 |
Bledisloe Cup | 2012-2019 | 18 | 16 | 2 | 40 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 83.33 |
IRB Rugby World Cup | 2015-2019 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
The Rugby Championship | 2012-2019 | 34 | 31 | 3 | 90 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 4 | 2 | 85.29 |
Test debut | Italy v New Zealand at Milan, Nov 14, 2009 match details |
Last Test | New Zealand v Wales at Tokyo, Nov 1, 2019 match details |
Test Statsguru | Main menu | Career summary | Match list | Most points | Most tries | Tournament list |
Ben Smith is currently one of the world's premier wingers but his future looks likely to be at outside centre for the All Blacks.
Smith has always been there or thereabouts when it came to the All Blacks reckoning but he had to wait until 2009 to earn his first full cap when he made his debut against Italy. But the Highlanders back, who can operate on the wing as well as fullback and centre, struggled to nail down a regular place in the All Blacks team and missed out on the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
However his strong form in the early stages of the 2012 Super Rugby season led to his recall, and he featured in all three test victories over Ireland. It was around this time the All Blacks coaching staff and various pundits started to talk about Smith as the incumbent to the Kiwis' outside centre berth. Conrad Smith has added fuel to these fires on numerous occasions when he spoke of his namesake's huge ability.
Come 2013, Smith was on fire for the Highlanders and scored six tries during the Super Rugby season. This form transferred on to the Test stage with Smith scoring two tries in the Kiwis' three Tests against France. Come the opening game of the Rugby Championship, Smith started on the wing against Australia in the first game and he marked the occasion with a hat-trick.
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