Brandon Smith (rugby league)

Brandon Smith
Personal information
Born (1996-05-31) 31 May 1996
Waiheke Island, New Zealand
Height 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight 93 kg (14 st 9 lb)
Playing information
Position Hooker

Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2017– Melbourne Storm 21 2 0 0 8
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
2018 New Zealand 1 1 0 0 4
As of 16 February 2018
Source: [1][2]

Brandon Smith (born 31 May 1996) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer who plays as a hooker for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League.

Early life

Born in Waiheke Island, New Zealand, Smith is of Cook Island and Māori descent. He moved to Townsville as a teenager becaue his brother Dylan Smith had an under 20s contract with the North Queensland Cowboys. In Townsville, he attended Kirwan State High School where he played school-level football.[3]

Playing career

He played his junior rugby league for the Waiheke Rams and Bay Roskill Young Guns in New Zealand, and the Centrals Tigers and Brothers in Townsville.[4]

Smith played for the North Queensland Cowboys in the National Youth Competition for two seasons.[5] In May 2016, he played for the Junior Kiwis against the Junior Kangaroos.[6] In September 2016, he was named at hooker in the Team of the Year.[7] In October 2016, he signed a 3-year contract with the Melbourne Storm.[8]

2017

On 30 April, Smith was named in the New Zealand national team's 20-man squad for the 2017 Anzac Test.[9] He made his NRL debut for the Storm against the Newcastle Knights in round 13, scoring a try.[10][11][12] On 24 July, he signed a contract extension with Melbourne, tying him to the club for another five years with a view to replacing Cameron Smith in the long-term as Melbourne's hooker.[13]

2018

At the beginning of the season he was part of the Melbourne Storm victorious 2018 World Club Challenge Team. Round 23 against the Eels, Smith showed his true gritty character by playing a vital role for his depleted teams, displaying determination to win with a injured knee. Brandon was also part of the Melbourne Storm team that played in the 2018 NRL Grand Final.

On 13th October, Smith made is international debut for the New Zealand Kiwis against the Australia in Auckland.

References

  1. ↑ "Brandon Smith – Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project. 31 May 1996. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ Walter, Brad (23 June 2017). "Brandon Smith hopes to follow in childhood idol's footsteps". Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  4. ↑ NRL Digital Media. "Meet: Brandon Smith – Storm". Melbournestorm.com.au. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "S". Nyc Database. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  6. ↑ "Updated: Representative Round team lists". NRL.com. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  7. ↑ "2016 Holden Cup Team of the Year announced". NRL.com. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  8. ↑ Melbourne Storm (11 October 2016). "Storm re-sign Griffin, add youngsters". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  9. ↑ "Kiwis team announced to take on Kangaroos". NRL.com. 30 April 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  10. ↑ "Updated team lists: Storm v Knights". NRL.com. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  11. ↑ NRL Digital Media. "Late Mail – Round 13 – Storm". Melbournestorm.com.au. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  12. ↑ "Slater stars as Storm thrash Knights". NRL.com. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
  13. ↑ Dan Walsh. "NRL 2017: Melbourne Storm lock in Big Three successors with four key re-signings". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2017-07-26.
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