Who is Marcus Smith: Ten things you should know about the England fly-half 

From Manila to Twickenham, find out about the No 10's sporting journey

Who is Marcus Smith: Ten things you should know about the England fly-half 

Marcus Smith is one of the most exciting players in English rugby.

The fly-half, who burst onto the scene as a teenager, is known for his attacking instincts and exciting skill-set.

Ten things you should know about Marcus Smith

1. Marcus Smith was born on 14 February 1999 in Manila, the capital of the Philippines.

His mother is Filipino and his dad English, and he is the oldest of three brothers. The family lived in the Philippines for seven years before moving to Singapore and then moved to England, settling in Brighton, when Smith was 13.

2. He first played rugby for the Centaurs club in Singapore.

“My dad got me into it – he used to play rugby – and as soon as I rocked up one Saturday morning I really enjoyed it,” he told Rugby World.

He started off as a scrum-half but moved to fly-half in his mid-teens, while at Brighton College.

3. He is a fan of football club Brighton & Hove Albion as well as Sussex County Cricket Club.

4. He had a trial with Harlequins aged 14 and joined the club full-time when he finished school, at 18.

He was thrust into the Harlequins first team shortly afterwards due to injuries. He made his Gallagher Premiership debut against London Irish at Twickenham in September 2017 and started 18 league matches in the 2017-18 season.

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5. He made his 100th appearance for Harlequins in March 2021, against Exeter.

A few months earlier, he had become the second youngest player to score 500 Premiership points – aged just 21 years 207 days when beating London Irish in September 2020. Only Jonny Wilkinson (21 years 100 days) had achieved the feat at a younger age.

6. Smith was central to Quins’ Premiership triumph in 2021.

Not only did he pick up the league’s Golden Boot award for kicking 246 points across the season, but he scored eight tries, produced 15 try assists, made 20 clean breaks and beat 41 defenders.

7. He was first called into the England set-up aged 18 in 2017 and became one of Eddie Jones’s ‘apprentice’ players.

He had trained with the squad earlier that year when England had sessions in Brighton.

8. He played for an England XV against the Barbarians in 2019 but didn’t make his Test debut for another two years.

He started at No 10 against the USA at Twickenham on Sunday 4 July 2021, marking the occasion by scoring a try and kicking eight points.

9. He was called up to the British & Irish Lions 2021 squad as injury cover for Finn Russell – while playing for England against Canada. He only found out the news once he had been substituted late on in the match.

10. Smith was only four when England won the 2003 Rugby World Cup, but he remembers watching it with his dad and describes Jonny Wilkinson as one of his heroes.

Since becoming a professional, he has had kicking sessions with Wilkinson.

He has represented England at U16, U18 and U20 level.

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