Smith given new Quins deal to repel ‘underhand’ offers
Teenage fly-half signs pro contract until 2022 Rivals tried to ‘induce things’, claims Kingston
John Kingston, the Harlequins director of rugby, has claimed that underhand approaches from other clubs were a factor in bringing forward the decision to award his fly-half prodigy Marcus Smith a new long-term contract.
The Premiership club announced yesterday that the 18-year-old has signed his first professional terms after a breakthrough season.
Smith, who is still listed in the academy section on the club’s website, had a year and a half remaining on his academy agreement but this senior deal will keep him at Harlequins until 2022.
The agreement also brings a significant increase in salary for Smith, who has attended several England training camps as an “apprentice player” and is one of the brightest prospects in English rugby for many years.
As per Rugby Football Union regulations, other clubs may not directly or indirectly approach any player who is under contract with a team or union unless the move is made in the final six months of the contract, or unless the player’s club provide consent. “Although people are not entitled to sniff around, I have my ear to the ground and I am aware of people trying to induce and pull things,” Kingston told The Daily Telegraph. “I am happy not to blow the whistle on them. But for me, the reality was that it was not helping Marcus and therefore I wanted to get it quickly resolved.”
Smith made his first-team debut in Harlequins’ season opener against London Irish and has made 17 appearances, scoring 153 points, including two tries in the Premiership and Champions Cup.
Kingston explained that the flyhalf’s impressive form meant the time was right to offer him an improved contract, with Smith having filled the No10 shirt after injuries to Demetri Catrakilis and Tim Swiel.
“I probably did not expect at the start of the season that he would be signing a professional deal this quickly,” Kingston admitted. “He had an academy contract. That senior contract I have given him, I am happy to tell you, takes him through to the summer of 2022.
“I rarely announce those contract lengths but in the case of Marcus I have no problem with people knowing. I want people to know that when we say long term, it really is long term. “He had earned the right to be treated into the senior squad and therefore I believed it was the right thing to do.
“He clearly was on an academylevel [salary], and the detail of contract financially is between him and us, but we felt it was the right thing to do to show that in our mind we see him as being very much part of the long-term future.” Smith’s strength of character, as much as his ability on the field, has pleased Kingston during a whirlwind few months for the teenager, and he believes that Smith can help shape the club’s future. “His greatest strength is actually nothing to do with his rugby,” Kingston explained. “It is Marcus as a person. He has great humility, great interpersonal skills. He listens to what is being asked of him and is always trying to learn.
“His parents are lovely people and Marcus is a lovely guy. It is Harlequins’ blessing that he is here for a long time to come. The future is incredibly bright with a player like that.”