Latest news with #TomElliot
Times
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Fin Smith: My biggest regret is never meeting grandad. Now I'm a Lion too
Judith Smith will be in a unique position in the history of the British & Irish Lions when she takes her green plastic seat at the Aviva Stadium for Friday night's tour-opening game against Argentina. She will be in Dublin to witness her son, Fin Smith, emulate the feats of her father, Tom Elliot, in becoming a Lion. Never before, in 137 years of touring, has there been such a grandfather-grandson connection. When he was not helping out on the family sheep farm in the Borders, Elliot was a prop for Gala and Scotland who defied his father's initial wishes by accepting an invitation to tour with the 1955 Lions. He contracted pleurisy in South Africa and spent time in hospital but still played eight matches and was hailed upon the squad's return for his contribution to the tour effort. Elliot died of motor neurone disease in 1998. Smith was born four years later and grew up idolising his grandfather, running around in his old Lions gear and asking eager questions of the man he knew only from photographs. Smith heard the stories of Elliot's playing days, from his achievements on the field to some wild post-match celebrations in Edinburgh and the day he quietened a gobby opposition prop by dropping a worm into his mouth. And so when Smith was selected for the 2025 Lions tour to Australia, his emotions spilled over. He thought of his grandfather. He thought of this unique family connection. And he was choked with pride. Smith's tears and those of his family reveal why the legacy of the red jersey matters so much to so many, even in an age of rampant commercialism. 'I don't really cry but I was bawling my eyes out,' Smith, 23, said after being selected. 'I phoned my parents. They were both sobbing. We didn't actually say a word to each other, we just sort of watched each other cry and then hung up. All I've ever wanted to do is be like my grandad and to replicate him.' The Times arranged for Smith to be reunited with Elliot's blazer from 1955 for a unique photo shoot, connecting Lion No380 with (barring any late mishap) Lion No862. 'It was almost a tailored fit,' Smith says. 'Although I am not sure what that says about him as a prop if he could have fitted into the same clothes as me! 'I wore the blazer to a few things growing up. For any smart occasion at school, I would stick on a pair of chinos, a shirt and that jacket because I thought I was the bollocks wearing it. I wore it to show my mates. 'It has a slightly different feel now, trying on my grandad's Lions blazer having been fitted for my own. It will be cool for my mum having two hanging up in the wardrobe one day. 'It feels super special. We have photos all over the house of him playing for Scotland and the Lions. The same with my granny. When you never meet someone you have a real perception of what you think they are like. At a young age it was pure admiration and idolisation of him. 'I love rugby, so to think there was someone in my family who had played for the Lions, I was completely in awe of everything he had done.' When Smith was asked recently to name his dream dinner party guests, his grandfather was on the list. 'My biggest regret in life is that I never got to meet him,' Smith says. 'I look back on everything I have read and learned and footage I have seen of him with real joy. I am so proud to be part of the family with him. 'Only recently, as I have got older, I have found out more about him. I have read all about his rise as a second-team prop at Gala to become the first player from the club to play for the Lions. 'My granny has told me in such detail of what he was like and the games he played in. To then be able to tell her that I had been picked for the Lions, to say, 'This is the same team as grandad played for' is so special and makes it so emotional for me.' Elliot, who won 16 caps for Scotland, never spoke much about his rugby career but he touched so many people in the game that the turnout for his funeral was enormous. Judith and Andrew, her husband and Fin's father, recently discovered a letter from the Lions, sent in October 1955, hailing Elliot's contribution on the three-month adventure to South Africa. Judith tells the story. 'When he was invited to go on tour, his dad said, 'No you are not going. There is farming to do, we are too busy'. That could have been it. You can't imagine Andy saying to Fin, 'You are not going'. 'They would have discussed it. 'You can't have three months off work' — that sort of conversation. My dad would have said: 'I want to go'. We have since found a letter sent to my grandad saying, 'Thank you very much for letting him go.' ' The letter from L.E.L Donne, the honourable secretary of the Four Home Unions Tours Committee, to Mr J Elliot confirms the eternal truth about Lions tours: that their success rests on the contribution of the entire squad and the efforts of those who do not make the Test team. 'My committee has asked me to write to you on their behalf to express their appreciation of the facilities granted to Mr Thomas Elliot, which enabled him to be a member of the British Isles Rugby Union Team on the recent tour to South Africa and Rhodesia,' the letter says. 'My Committee would like you to know that his exemplary conduct and loyalty contributed in no small measure to the outstanding success of the team both on and off the field.' That description of Elliot tallied with the man Judith knew. He was humble and homely. 'He would farm in the morning, go up to Murrayfield in the afternoon to play for Scotland and come back the next day,' Judith says. 'Dad was one of the good guys. Although he was a prop forward, he was the kind of softest chap you can imagine. He was really kind. He had a great sense of humour. 'This man had been giving him loads of grief in the scrum once, niggling away at dad. So the next scrum they're in, when the chap was there starting the chat again, dad just picked up a worm and popped it in his mouth.' Judith sees traits between her father and son, particularly in how thoughtful they are. Smith has always been analytical. He has just completed his fifth year of an Open University degree in mathematics and economics. His dissertation, on how families make their spending decisions, was completed shortly after Northampton Saints had played in the Champions Cup final. 'The last words were written in the taxi on the way to his first Lions meet-up,' Judith says. As a sportsman, Smith was a tennis player first, competing as a schoolboy against Jack Draper, the world No6. He was an angry player, prone to smashing racquets, before switching his focus to rugby while at Warwick School, primarily to play with his friends. Smith's older brother, Angus, also played tennis and rugby. When they go home, they still tackle each other on the trampoline in the garden. 'It started for my grandad just running around with his mates and that is one thing with rugby that resonates with me: training and playing with my best mates every weekend,' Smith says. 'Having a nice full-circle moment with the Lions call-up has been great.' Andrew believes that the tennis background has been key to his son's rapid rise, securing the England No10 jersey in February and now starting for the Lions. 'When you're on the court by yourself, you've only got yourself who can help you,' he says. 'He's always had that resilience, that ability to look after himself, which he's then taken into a team environment. Ordering some big scary forwards around doesn't seem to phase him.' The prospect of being a professional had barely dawned on Smith until Worcester Warriors offered him a contract in the summer of 2020. 'The night it happened, he got in the lift and his little face, he couldn't believe it. That felt like the pinnacle of his career,' Judith says. The Smiths have one of their son's England Under-20 jerseys up on a wall at their house. The decor needs an emergency upgrade, now that he has become a Premiership champion with Northampton, England's first-choice fly half and a Lion in the space of 12 months. Smith is one of nine Englishmen selected to play Argentina, including his fellow Saints Alex Mitchell, the scrum half, and Tommy Freeman on the wing. Smith will have Maro Itoje as his captain and some heavy-duty weaponry outside of him in Sione Tuipulotu, Bundee Aki and Duhan van der Merwe, with Marcus Smith operating as a creative foil from full back. 'This is all a bit mad,' Judith says. 'It has all happened so quickly. Yesterday on Instagram there was a picture of them in a huddle and he's chatting away and you just think, 'You are only little!' 'But he can definitely hold his own. He has proved it. My dad would be very proud of Fin.'
Times
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Fin Smith: I grew up wearing grandfather's Lions kit — call-up is special
Fin Smith never knew his grandfather, Tom Elliot, who died in 1998, but he has been a lifelong inspiration. The England fly half, who turned 23 on Sunday, grew up trying on Elliot's 1955 British & Irish Lions blazer and running around in his old jerseys. 'All I've ever wanted to do is be like him and replicate him,' he achieve that honour with Lions selection last Thursday, 70 years after Elliot toured South Africa, left Smith struggling to contain his emotions. He had played himself into contention by seizing the England fly half jersey during the Six Nations and leading Northampton Saints to the Champions Cup final, having piloted his club to the Gallagher Premiership title last season. But no player
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Fin Smith reveals pride at following in the footsteps of his late grandfather after British & Irish Lions selection
As a child, Fin Smith made regular trips to Scotland to visit family relatives and would often be seen wearing the old British & Irish Lions kit of his grandfather Tom Elliot. Now, the Northampton and England fly-half is set to receive some of his own and follow in his late relative's footsteps after being selected for this summer's trip to Australia. Elliot, a Scotland international and prop, was a Lions tourist in 1955. Smith could have worn a blue shirt too, but having been born and raised in Warwickshire, he opted for England. A standout season for club and country earned the 23-year-old a Lions call from head coach Andy Farrell last week as one of three playmakers in a 38-man squad. 'It's the pinnacle. It gets me emotional thinking about it,' Smith said of his selection. 'I've grown up running around in his (Elliot's) old kit and old blazer. I've got his old shirt from 1955 at home. It's a bit dusty and there are a few holes in it. 'I'm English and play for England. He obviously played for Scotland, but all I've ever wanted to do is replicate him. 'To have the chance to do that and wear the same shirt he did is incredibly special. It's made mum and her side of the family pretty emotional. 'They half-heartedly cheer for me when I play for England. But following in his (Elliot's) footsteps is the main thing out of everything with this for me. 'That's what makes me prouder than any individual accolade I could have. It's amazing.' Smith became England's first-choice fly-half during the Six Nations. He led Northampton to last season's Gallagher Premiership title and this term, has helped them to the final of the Investec Champions Cup. Only Bordeaux stand between the Saints and European glory in Cardiff on May 24. Smith's standout display and outplaying of then Lions rival Sam Prendergast in Northampton's Champions Cup semi-final over Leinster sealed his place on the plane Down Under. He only turned 23 on Sunday. Smith had an anxious wait before finding out he was named in the Lions squad last week 'It's mental. The most horrific week of all time. I had sleepless nights and was stressing all day,' said Smith, reflecting on last Thursday's nerve-inducing Lions squad announcement. 'I was an absolute wreck. I don't really cry but I was bawling my eyes out. I went outside and phoned my parents. They were both sobbing. I was sobbing on the other end of the phone. 'We didn't actually say a word to each other. We just watched each other cry and then hung up. It's something so rare in sport these days that you find out in that manner. 'It really is that raw. What a day.' Scotland's Finn Russell and Smith's England colleague Marcus Smith are the other two No 10's travelling to Australia. Fin Smith's parents, Andrew and Judith, are both Scottish. 'This is the first time they'll be able to cheer for me properly in a little while, so that'll be nice,' Fin Smith joked. 'All I've ever wanted to do is prove to myself I can mix it at Test level and I feel like I've done that to some extent. 'That's been the biggest thing for me. I've been really happy with that and it's nice to see all this stuff coming off the back of it. 'I didn't even know the Lions tour was this year until the Six Nations came around. It has been a pretty fast process, but one I have loved. 'I wouldn't change it at all.'
The Independent
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Fin Smith 'emotional' to follow in grandfather's footsteps after Lions call-up
Fin Smith will fulfil a boyhood dream by emulating his grandad, having grown up playing in the same British and Irish Lions blazer and kit used by the Scotland prop in 1955. Smith has been included in Andy Farrell's squad as reward for impressing as England's first choice fly-half during the Six Nations and his stellar display for Northampton against Leinster in the Champions Cup semi-finals. The fire fuelling his greatest ambition was first lit by grandad Tom Elliot, who made five midweek appearances for the elite of British and Irish rugby on their visit to South Africa 70 years ago. 'The Lions is the pinnacle. It gets me emotional thinking about growing up running around in his old kit and blazer,' said Smith, who was also eligible to play for Scotland before pursuing a Test career with England. 'I've got his old blazer from 1955 at home. It's a bit dusty and there are a few holes in it, but it will be cool to have both blazers. 'I believe that I'm English and play for England. He obviously played for Scotland, but all I've ever wanted to do is be like him and replicate him. 'To actually have the chance to do that and wear the same shirt and the same badge that he did is incredibly special. It made mum and her side of the family pretty emotional when the squad was announced. 'They're all at home with their Scottish accents and can half-heartedly cheer for me when I play for England, but this is the pinnacle. 'For me, doing what he's done and following in his footsteps makes me more proud than any individual accolade I could have. It's amazing.' Smith watched Thursday's squad unveiling on TV alongside his Northampton team-mates and was the last of the Saints to have their names read out due to the announcement taking place in alphabetical order. Henry Pollock, Tommy Freeman and Alex Mitchell were also picked and later that day they were hosted for dinner and champagne by England centre, Fraser Dingwall, their stand in club captain. 'It was mental – the most horrific week of all time. I had sleepless nights and was stressing all day,' Smith said. 'I was sat with a load of the other lads and watched the other boys get called out and was like: 'Oh no, this is going to be awful if it doesn't happen for me now.' And then it got announced and I was an absolute wreck. 'I don't really cry and never have but I was bawling my eyes out. I went outside and phoned my parents. They were both sobbing, I was sobbing on the other end of the phone. 'We didn't actually say a word to each other – we just sort of watched each other cry and then hung up the phone. 'It's something so rare in sport these days that you find out in that manner. It really is that raw. Mental. What a day. What a day.'
The Herald Scotland
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Fin Smith 'emotional' to follow in grandfather's footsteps after Lions call-up
The fire fuelling his greatest ambition was first lit by grandad Tom Elliot, who made five midweek appearances for the elite of British and Irish rugby on their visit to South Africa 70 years ago. 'The Lions is the pinnacle. It gets me emotional thinking about growing up running around in his old kit and blazer,' said Smith, who was also eligible to play for Scotland before pursuing a Test career with England. 'I've got his old blazer from 1955 at home. It's a bit dusty and there are a few holes in it, but it will be cool to have both blazers. 'I believe that I'm English and play for England. He obviously played for Scotland, but all I've ever wanted to do is be like him and replicate him. 'To actually have the chance to do that and wear the same shirt and the same badge that he did is incredibly special. It made mum and her side of the family pretty emotional when the squad was announced. 'They're all at home with their Scottish accents and can half-heartedly cheer for me when I play for England, but this is the pinnacle. 'For me, doing what he's done and following in his footsteps makes me more proud than any individual accolade I could have. It's amazing.' Smith watched Thursday's squad unveiling on TV alongside his Northampton team-mates and was the last of the Saints to have their names read out due to the announcement taking place in alphabetical order. Henry Pollock, Tommy Freeman and Alex Mitchell were also picked and later that day they were hosted for dinner and champagne by England centre, Fraser Dingwall, their stand in club captain. 'It was mental – the most horrific week of all time. I had sleepless nights and was stressing all day,' Smith said. 'I was sat with a load of the other lads and watched the other boys get called out and was like: 'Oh no, this is going to be awful if it doesn't happen for me now.' And then it got announced and I was an absolute wreck. 'I don't really cry and never have but I was bawling my eyes out. I went outside and phoned my parents. They were both sobbing, I was sobbing on the other end of the phone. 'We didn't actually say a word to each other – we just sort of watched each other cry and then hung up the phone. 'It's something so rare in sport these days that you find out in that manner. It really is that raw. Mental. What a day. What a day.'
