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Marcus Smith signs long-term Harlequins contract extension
By Liam Heagney
Marcus Smith has signed an unspecified length, long-term contract extension with Harlequins, ending months of speculation that he was ready to move to France or to a rival Gallagher Premiership club. The 21-year-old is the latest player to commit his future to the London club, following the likes of Danny Care, Dino Lamb, James and Ross Chisholm and Aaron Morris in recent weeks.
Having joined the Harlequins academy in 2017, Smith is on course to make his 100th appearance this season, having played his 95th game in last weekend's win at Bath.
Against London Irish at the end of the 2019/20 season, he also became the second-youngest player in history to reach 500 points in the Premiership at the age of 21, behind only Jonny Wilkinson.
A star at the age-grade level, Smith has played for England U18 and U20 sides and featured in the uncapped 2019 England XV fixture against the Barbarians.
Delighted to have ended all the recent speculation about his future, Smith said: “I’m thrilled to extend my time with Harlequins. I’ve been part of the club’s academy section since I was 14 and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.
“I wanted to extend my time here to continue to build with this fantastic club and hopefully bring some silverware to The Stoop. The chance to make some great memories with some of the guys I’ve come through the age-grades with and a few of the older players here is something I’m looking forward to. We have a brilliant squad and hopefully we can keep improving and delivering in the way we have these past few weeks.”
Harlequins general manager Billy Millard added: “We’re thrilled to have Marcus recommit to the club once more. At a young age, Marcus has become one of the key figures within our squad. To have the impact and cool-headed approach Marcus does as a 21-year-old fly-half in the Premiership is hugely impressive.
"We’re really looking forward to seeing him continue to learn and grow at the centre of our team. We are really excited by the squad we have assembled at the moment, and Marcus’ recommitment is a testament to the spine of homegrown talent we have within our team.”
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John, McKenzie was 10 years ago and he only lasted 15 months until the disgustingly unfair affair that brought him down. I thought that if he didn't get another gig over Eddie V2 then he was done. I read that he had been approached but declined to put his name in the ring.
There are no potential Wallaby coaches outside of McKellar unless you have some inside info?
Go to commentsThe way they are defending is sometime pathetic to be honest. Itoje is usually on the inside of the rush and he is paired with a slower tight forward. Unable to keep up with the rush we have seen the line become disconnected on the inside where the big boys are. How many times have we seen Earl rush past the first receiver almost into no mans land covering no attacker. It looks like a system without any guidance. Tome Wright, Ikitau and a number of Wallabies went back to this soft centre as did Williams, Jordan and several others. Also when the line is broken the multiple lines of defence seems to be missing. The rush is predicated on a cover and recovery system with multiple lines of defence but with England you dont see it any more. Fitness and conditioning seems to be off as well as players are struggling to keep up with the intensity of the rush. Felix Jones has left a huge hole. The whole situation was and is a mess. Why they insist on not letting him go and having him work remotely is beyond me. Its leading to massive negative press and is a hot button issue thats distracting from the squad. Also the communication around Jones and his role has been absolute rubbish and is totally disjointed. While some say he is working remotely and playing a role others are saying theres been no contact. His role has not been defined and so people keep asking and keep getting different answers. England need a clean break from him and need to start over. Whatever reason for his leaving its time to cut the rope before the saga drags the whole Borthwick regime down. As for Joe El Abd well good luck to him. He is being made to look like an amateur by the whole saga and he is being asked to coach a system thats not his and which has been perfected and honed since 2017 by Nienaber, Jones, Erasmus and Co and which was first started by White in 2004. He is literally trying to figure out a system pioneered by double world cup winning coaches at the highest level and coach it at the same time. Talk about being on a hiding to nothing.
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