13-05-2025
Leinster starlet says he kept Man Utd ace Kobbie Mainoo in his pocket before switching to rugby
LEINSTER RUGBY Academy prop Niall Smyth has reflecting on his rapid rise from rugby rookie to earning a senior Leinster contract.
Smyth revealed that he hadn't even picked up a rugby ball before relocating from New York to Ireland.
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Leinster Academy prop Niall Smyth revealed that he played against Man Utd during his soccer days in the USA before moving to Dublin
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Smyth says he kept Kobbie Mainoo scoreless during a game before he permanently switched codes
At that point, his sporting focus had been entirely on a different game, soccer.
Before Smyth moved to Dublin to attend boarding school at Blackrock College, he quickly saw rugby as an opportunity to settle in and meet new people.
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And he revealed during his time in New York, he kept
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The Leinster star won a state championship playing soccer before his rugby days, and played against a number of big clubs, that included the likes of West Ham and Man Utd.
20-year-old Smyth said: 'I wasn't quite the same size I am now. I was probably about 65kg and 6'1″ but I was pretty quick.'
'I didn't play rugby back home. I was playing football at the time. My dad was always saying to give rugby a shot but I never played in the States.
'There was no club near me and I was flat out on the football, so I didn't really get into it."
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'I never played for an MLS team or anything like that. I was kind of the step below that, because I think that would have clashed with my school, going to that kind of level. I tried to balance the two, between school and football.
'I was playing at the highest club level possible without going into an academy, essentially.
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"We were ranked fifth in the nation for a while. We won the State championship in New York. We were kind of always up and about there at the top of the club level nationally.
'I played against some high-profile teams like West Ham and Manchester United.
"I marked Kobbie Mainoo and I kept him quiet, for the most part. He was obviously a standout at the time but I don't think he scored.'
Although still waiting for a senior debut, the powerful tight-head has already featured in this season's 'A' Interprovincial Championship wins over Connacht Eagles and Munster 'A'.
But he'll hope to take another step forward next season on what has already been a remarkable journey between the association football and rugby union codes.
