The Western Force continues to make waves in women’s rugby with the signing of Wallaroos centre and 2023 Super W Player of the Year Cecilia Smith from the Queensland Reds.
The 30-year-old centre will join the Force ahead of the club’s upcoming Japan tour fresh from Wallaroos duty in South Africa at the WXV2.
Smith currently has 16 Wallaroos caps to her name, having debuted for Australia against New Zealand in 2022, including being part of the Rugby World Cup squad played in 2022.
Samoa-born, Leeton-raised Smith captained the Reds last Super W season, having won the competition’s Player of the Year in 2023 after scoring three tries, with six penalties and 18 conversions from seven games.
Smith, who scored a double on her Reds’ Super W debut in Round 1 2019 against the Melbourne Rebels, has played 28 Super W games, scoring 10 tries and a total of 116 points.
The talented back said she was excited to join the Force program after the side’s maiden Super W finals appearance last season.
Smith said: “I’m really excited to be signing with the Force. I've heard good things about how well this program has progressed and the quality of footy they've produced in the last couple of years so I'm keen to experience it myself.
“I'm near the back end of my career and I've always wanted to experience other clubs and the Force was always the club that interests me.”
Smith added that she was motivated by the lure of making Australia’s 2025 World Cup squad on home soil, but also playing alongside Wallaroos centre partner and Force captain Trilleen Pomare.
“Obviously with the World Cup next year everyone will be pushing for a spot and it's the goal but I just want to really enjoy my footy, everyone plays good footy when they're in a happy place plus Trill was always in my ear to come down west,” Smith said.
“We've become good mates since we met in Wallaroos and we've been working on our combo for a while now, mostly in trainings but would love the chance to finally play alongside her in a full season of Super W and give our combo a crack which is also part of the reason so looking forward to it.”
Force women’s head coach Dylan Parsons was thrilled to land the well-credentialed Smith.
“Cecilia brings a lot of experience but also a lot of respect from the competition,” he said. “She’s been a high performer in Super W for a long time.
“She’s key player for the Wallaroos and adds experience to our young aspiring backline, so bringing someone like that into our environment will help a lot and help support some of our experienced players like Trilleen.
“Cecilia and Trilleen have a really strong connection and relationship through their time in the Wallaroos. To have those two together is something we’re really excited about.”
Parsons added that Smith’s decision to join the Force was another endorsement for the Club’s women’s program, having already recruited Sera Naiqama, Loretta Mailangi and Grace Freeman this off-season.
“For us to be the club that Cee wanted to come to, to get the best out of herself, to have a shot at next year’s World Cup, shows that the program is really well-respected and players want to come to the Western Force,” he said.
“For us to have a player like that sign with the club is a really big endorsement of the program. We want to produce more Wallaroos but also make the Wallaroos that come here even better, especially with the World Cup being next year. We want players to know when they come here, they’ll get better and become better Wallaroos as a result of it.”
Nicole Ledington, Hannah Palelei, Rosie Ebbage, Alapeta Ngauamo, Sheree Hume and Georgia Cormick have all recently re-signed with the Force.
The Force women’s squad for the upcoming Japan tour will fly out of Perth next Wednesday. Smith will link up with the squad early next week in Perth, flying in from Wallaroos duty in Cape Town.
Cecilia Smith
DOB: 13/3/1994
Birthplace: Apia, Samoa
169cm
Centre
Wallaroos (2022-, 18 games, 2 tries)
Queensland Reds (2019-2024, 28 games, 10 tries)
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