John Smit
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| Full name | John William Smit | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 3 April 1978 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Pietersburg, South Africa | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 268 lb (122 kg; 19 st 2 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Pretoria Boys High School | ||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Natal (briefly) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Hooker, prop | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Amateur clubs | |||
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| Years | Club / team | ||
| 1997 | University of Natal (Maritzburg) | ||
| Professional / senior clubs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 2007–2008 2011–2013 |
Clermont Saracens |
3 46 |
(5) (10) |
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Correct as of 20 October 2013
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| Provincial/State sides | |||
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| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 1998–2011 | Sharks (Currie Cup) | ? | (?) |
| Super Rugby | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 1998–2007, 2008–2011 | Sharks | 125 | (40) |
| Current local club | Sharks – CEO | ||
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Correct as of 20 October 2013
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| National team(s) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 2000–2011 |  South Africa |
111 | (40) |
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Correct as of 30 November 2012
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John William Smit (born 3 April 1978) is a South African former rugby union player and former chief executive officer of the Sharks. He was the 50th captain of the South Africa national rugby union team, and led the team to win the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He played most of his senior career as a hooker, but also won 13 caps as a prop, where he had also played for South Africa's under-21 team. He retired from international rugby following the 2011 Rugby World Cup as the most-capped South African player ever, with 111 appearances.
Smit was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame on 24 October 2011 (while still active at club level), alongside all other World Cup-winning captains and head coaches from the tournament's inception in 1987 through 2007 (minus the previously inducted John Eales).
Born 3 April 1978 in Pietersburg, South Africa, Smit attended Fields College (then Fields Primary School) in Rustenburg and then went on to Pretoria Boys High School where he was head prefect in 1996 and played for the school's first XV from 1994 to 1996.
Smit played his first Springbok game in 2000 at the age of 22, when South Africa beat Canada 51–18 at Basil Kenyon Stadium in East London. Between October 2003 and June 2007, Smit played in a record 46 consecutive Test matches for South Africa, though it was not until 2004, when he was made captain of the squad by then new coach Jake White, that he became a regular member of the starting XV.
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