Photo: New Zealand Government, Office of the Governor-General / CC BY 4.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Aaron Smith is one of those players who makes you rethink what "elite" looks like, because at 171 cm he's not exactly the prototype you'd sketch for a top-tier rugby scrum half — and yet he's arguably the best nine in the world for a good stretch of the 2010s and into the 2020s. Over 124 caps for the All Blacks, second-most capped back in New Zealand history — that's not luck, that's relentless excellence under the most demanding rugby program on the planet. His passing speed and decision-making are genuinely freakish; he finds gaps that shouldn't exist and gets the ball out in a heartbeat. The move to Toyota Verblitz in Japan feels like a natural wind-down for a legend, but even then you get the sense he's still playing at a level most nines can only aspire to. Palmerston North produced something special.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Aaron Smith
- Name (Japanese)
- アーロン・スミス
- Reading
- あーろん・すみす
- Born
- November 21, 1988 (age 37)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Scorpio / Dragon
- Origin
- Palmerston North, New Zealand
- Height
- 171 cm
- Occupation
- rugby union player
2. Background
- High school
- Feilding High School
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Aaron Smith born?
Born November 21, 1988 (age 37).
Where is Aaron Smith from?
Aaron Smith is from Palmerston North, New Zealand.
What does Aaron Smith do?
Aaron Smith works as rugby union player.
How tall is Aaron Smith?
Aaron Smith is 171 cm.
Rugby union player — see all → · More people from New Zealand →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.