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Greg Smith (rugby league)

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Greg Smith
Personal information
Born (1972-01-16) January 16, 1972 (age 52)
DeRidder, Louisiana, United States[1]
Playing information
PositionWing
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1999 Newcastle Knights 1 0 0 0 0
Source: [2]

Greg Smith (born January 16, 1972) is an American track and field coach who is well known for playing a single rugby league game for the Newcastle Knights in Australia's National Rugby League in 1999.

Playing career

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American football

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Smith attended Fort Hays State University and Western State College of Colorado, where he played American football as a wide receiver. He signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as a free agent in 1996, but was later cut from the squad and did not appear in the NFL.[1]

Rugby league

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Smith represented the United States at the 1997 Rugby League World Sevens.[3] He subsequently joined the Western Suburbs Magpies and played in the Metropolitan Cup (reserve grade).[1]

Warren Ryan, who had coached the United States at the World Sevens, brought Smith to the Newcastle Knights as a pre-season trialist in 1999.[1] During an injury crisis at the club, Smith made his one and only NRL appearance in Newcastle's 26–28 loss to Canterbury in round 3. He is remembered for his poor performance, in which he dropped the ball multiple times, missed multiple tackles, and allowed Canterbury to score two tries as Newcastle surrendered a 24–4 lead.[4][5]

Smith was accused of misrepresenting his time with Philadelphia in order to earn a contract with Newcastle after the media learned he had not actually played in the NFL.[4][6] Smith maintains that no such claim was ever made.[1]

Smith is reputed to have vanished from rugby league circles after the match.[5][6] However, he continued to play in the Metropolitan Cup after he was released by Newcastle mid-season.[1]

Post-playing career

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Smith is now a full-time track and field coach in Sydney at junior and elite level. He has coached Anthony Alozie, Taylor Doyle, and Bendere Oboya.[7]

Smith was a running coach on the set of the 2014 film Unbroken.[8]

Smith's coaching accreditation was suspended in June 2018 during an ASADA investigation.[9][3] He successfully appealed the decision, arguing that he was not an athlete when he tested positive for Ligandrol.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Sterlo on the Couch. September 9, 2015. Fox League.
  2. ^ "Greg Smith - Career Stats & Summary". Rugby League Project.
  3. ^ a b Robinson, Georgina (April 5, 2019). "Athletics titles rocked by news of coach suspension over ASADA probe". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Prichard, Greg (February 17, 2006). "Tomahawk has axe to grind". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Campton, Nick (September 1, 2015). "USA Tomahawks: A brief history of American rugby league". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "One hit wonders: Players who lasted just one season in the NRL". Sporting News. July 22, 2016. Retrieved February 7, 2019.[dead link‍]
  7. ^ "About Speedcity". Speed City. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  8. ^ Utichi, Joe (December 29, 2014). "Greg Smith Transformed 'Unbroken' Star Jack O'Connell Into Olympic-Level Louis Zamperini". Deadline. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  9. ^ "Coach banned: Aussie's Olympic bid in limbo". Herald Sun. April 5, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  10. ^ Gleeson, Martin (February 10, 2020). "Doping ban lifted for Australian athletics coach Greg Smith". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
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