Tony Smith and his older brother, Brian, have taken very different paths to get to this point, but on Sunday they will finally coach against each other for the first time. Unlike Brian, who returned home to Australia after two previous spells in England with Hull and Bradford, Tony has remained in the country ever since taking charge at Huddersfield in 2000. He even became a British citizen in 2008.
Tony, younger by 13 years, grew up watching Brian coach on television in the 1980s, before playing under him and then becoming his assistant before branching out as a coach on his own.
When Tony’s Warrington take on Brian’s Wakefield – the first meeting between the sides marked probably the lowest point of the season for Wakefield as they capitulated 80-0 at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in April – their parents are expected to tune into the game from their house in Maclean, a small town near Australia’s Northern Rivers.
Tony does not hide the fact that he idolised his brother. “He left home when I was starting school to go to Sydney,” he says. “We’re 13 years apart so I’d only see him once or twice a year, up until when I went to play for Illawarra when he was head coach. I didn’t know him much, but I idolised my brother.
“As a little boy you loved all rugby league players, and he played for a couple of teams and then went on to coaching. I looked up to him in my adolescence and then I had the opportunity to play at Illawarra with him. I joined up with him a few years later again at St George and played under him there, and a few years after I’d retired I joined up with him as a coach at Parramatta.
“I’ve worked with him in three blocks throughout my life and learnt a whole lot, mostly of how to do things well.”
Brian is equally complimentary of Tony, who has won every domestic honour in the English game during spells with Leeds and Warrington – but was quick to try and cool the furore surrounding Sunday’s meeting. “Neither Tony or I am going to play in this game,” he says. “I understand it’s a story because we have the same parentage, but we’ve got jobs to do.
“Tony’s career is a tremendous coaching success story. He lost his first 15 games at Huddersfield but look at what he’s gone on to achieve. His dedication and toughness is tremendous. The fact he’s my younger brother makes me immensely proud. He’s done a great job everywhere he’s gone, which shows he’s a phenomenal coach.”
As for Tony’s view on the fanfare? “I understand the interest in it – it’s pretty unique in world sport and it’s not a common occurrence. But if my team wins I won’t be punching the air because I’ve beaten Brian Smith and I consider myself a better coach than him though – that’s not how it works.”
Yet despite their firm stance on the matter, you get the feeling there will be plenty of sibling rivalry floating around come kick-off.
