TRIBUTES are being paid across the rugby world tonight to Tom Smith, who has died aged 50.

One of the finest players of his generation, Smith won 61 Scotland caps between 1997 and 2005, and also represented the British & Irish Lions on the 1997 and 2001 tours, playing in all six Tests. He was diagnosed with stage four colorectal cancer in 2019.

“Tom was one of the toughest and most skilful players I had the pleasure to call a team-mate,” Scotland coach Gregor Townsend said on the Scottish Rugby website. “He succeeded in the most challenging of environments and kept up a high level of play well into his thirties.

“Tom also did a tremendous amount for charitable causes and was a great family man. I am convinced that he will be regarded as one of our best-ever players and his loss will be felt by all those who played with him or watched him for club and country over the years.”

A quiet, undemonstrative man off the pitch, Smith was an innovative and dynamic player on it. Born in London in 1971, he played his early adult career with Dundee HSFP then Watsonians when the game was still amateur, then represented Caledonia Reds and Glasgow in the first seasons of professionalism before going on to play for Brive then Northampton Saints.

Shortly after winning his first Scotland cap in 1997, he was selected by Ian McGeechan and Jim Telfer for the Lions tour to South Africa. He was at first seen as an outside hope for a Test place, but impressed so much in the build-up games that he ended up becoming a crucial member of the team that won the series against the Springboks. 

A key player in the Scotland team that became the last ever Five Nations champions in 1999, he started all five matches during that campaign, and remained in fine form during the subsequent two seasons, ensuring that he would again be a member of the Lions party when they toured Australia.

"We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Tom Smith,” a statement from the Lions said. “Tom made an incredible impact for the Lions, touring in 1997 as well as 2001, and was one of the great props to play the game. Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time. RIP Tom.”

Some props are masters of the scrum but struggle in the loose, while others are mobile enough but lack the technical know-how to thrive in the set piece. Smith was a master of both arts, being able to scrummage bigger men to a standstill yet also somehow finding the energy to get involved in open play as well. He was a man for whom professionalism came at just the right time, ensuring that his talents were seen on the biggest stage and enjoyed to the full.

John Jeffrey, the current chairman of Scottish Rugby who was one of the greatest players in the generation before Smith, praised his humility and talent. “Today, Scottish Rugby has lost not only one of its greatest players but more importantly one of its greatest people,” Jeffrey said. 

“Tom embodied everything we like to espouse about our great game. He didn’t fit the traditional role as a rugby player but showed that all shapes and sizes can shine on the International stage. He went about his business in such an unassuming manner that he caught most opponents off guard. It was this quiet but determined attitude that saw him achieve every accolade in the game.

“Pound for pound, he probably was Scotland’s greatest international. Tom was without a doubt the most humble person I have ever met and all of Scottish Rugby’s thoughts go out to Zoe and the children.”

McGeechan, now Sir Ian, called Smith the “greatest Scotland player of the professional era”. Telfer, the inspirational forwards coach on that Lions tour in 1997, said that Smith “was a rugby player first and a prop second. He was never compromised when he had the ball in his hands. He could move it quickly or take the player on or hold it up.

“His skill was the thing I remember with Tom. You could play a different kind of game when he was in the team.

“He could be a link player but was still a solid servant in the scrums and lineouts. He was always a very good scrummager - he was the ideal shape because he had the bulk as well.”

Smith played on until 2009, then worked as a forwards coach, first with Edinburgh, then with Lyon. He was inducted into Scottish Rugby’s Hall of Fame late last year, and flew from his home in France to present the match ball before the Test at BT Murrayfield against South Africa.  

He is survived by his wife, Zoe, and by their children, Angus, Amelie and Teddy.