John Smit
John Smit lifted the 2007 Rugby World Cup in 2007. Picture: SA Rugby

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Springbok Rugby World Cup winning captains: John Smit

John Smit was the second Springbok rugby captain to raise the Webb-Ellis Cup in Rugby World Cup glory. We look at a few facts about Smit.

13-09-23 10:13
John Smit
John Smit lifted the 2007 Rugby World Cup in 2007. Picture: SA Rugby

John Smit was the second Springbok rugby captain to raise the Webb-Ellis Cup in Rugby World Cup glory. 

THE EARLY YEARS

Smit was born in Polokwane (Pietersburg) in 1978. He completed his schooling at Pretoria Boys High and started his professional career with the Sharks Rugby team.

PLAYING YEARS

Smit played 111 Tests for the Springboks. He was a one-team player in South Africa and played a total of 125 games for the Sharks. In 2008, he signed to play for French Top 14 team, Clermont Montferrand. He did not feature much in his first season and only played three games thus he re-signed with the Sharks the following season.

After his second stint with the Sharks rugby team, Smit ended his career at Saracens, playing in a further 29 matches before retiring from the game. 

ALSO READ: Springbok Rugby World Cup winning captains: Francois Pienaar

RECORD AS SPRINGBOK CAPTAIN

Statistically, John Smit is the Springbok’s most successful captain. He led the Boks to 46 victories out of the 64 Tests as the captain. As a Rugby World Cup-winning captain, he was inducted into the Rugby Hall of Fame in 2011.

CAREER AFTER PLAYING

Smit is currently the CEO of SSG Holdings. He was the CEO of Sharks Rugby between 2013 and 2016. Not a man to make a big fuss about anything he does in the charity space, but he does have his own initiative named Barney’s Army

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WHY IS JOHN SMIT CALLED “BARNEY”?

Contrary to what some may believe, there is no connection with Barney the dinosaur. During his school days, some thought that Smit resembled the town of Springfield’s drunkard and barfly, Homer Simpson’s best friend, Barney Gumble.

This article is the second of a three part series featuring the three Rugby World Cup-winning captains. The first in the series featured the first one, Francois Pienaar in 1995.

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