Former South Africa coach Nick Mallett has described the Northampton Saints fly-half as a “complete player”, while former Springbok Robbie Fleck added that he is currently England’s best fly-half.
The battle between the Smiths, Northampton’s Fin and Harelquins’ Marcus has picked up pace in 2024 and is likely to intensify in the coming years.
Marcus has emerged as England’s starting fly-half this year, but the 22-year-old Finn is close behind.
Both Fleck and Mallett were impressed by the Fin after his performance against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld in Northampton’s victorious Investec Champions Cup second round, with the former center insisting he is England’s best flyhalf.
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Join the latest episodes of RugbyPass TV Vox OfficeThe two discussed the differences between the two players, with Marcus primarily creating opportunities for himself, while Fin creates opportunities for others. Mallett took a liking to the Saint, a former player of Fleck’s teammate Henry Honiball, who was “always trying to grab the attention of others and create space”.
Of course, the analysis doesn’t diminish Marcus’ ability to get better service from fullback. This will likely be investigated by Steve Borthwick in 2025. Indeed, Fleck, who had previously criticized Marcus, explained: The 39-cap Englishman is “outstanding”.
Mallett also praised Finn’s defensive game, saying, “He can definitely defend that channel.”
“Look, Marcus Smith was an outstanding player on the international stage,” Fleck said.
‘He is a star player who creates his own chances. But when I look at Fin Smith, he is a complete teenager to me, a young teenager who is just growing up. He’s learning a lot from Marcus Smith and they both help each other, but the guy has a complete game and is a brilliant young fly-half.”
Mallett added: “Top fly-halves are built for players outside themselves. He is not looking for himself. It’s when it opens up that he gets his chance. He always tries to attract other people’s attention and make space for them. He does.
“I got the feeling that Marcus wanted a little bit of getting out of the way and a little bit of show-and-go. If not, he passes. “I think Finn Smith is closer to Henry Horniball than Marcus.”
