met Albert Baskiville in Wellington and played a leading part in the formation of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain, helping to select the touring party. At the time Smith was probably the best known athlete in New Zealand and his involvement in the tour lent it credibility and increased its ability to attract players. Smith was elected vice-captain and the tour was a success, both financially and on the field, with the team winning its three match series against Great Britain. Smith later described the tour as the happiest one he had ever been associated with. After touring with the professional All Blacks he stayed on in Britain to play professionally with the Oldham club (Heritage № 118), signing a £150 contract. This gave Smith the financial freedom he had been seeking and he bought his fiancée over from New Zealand to join him in Oldham. George William Smith played right-, i.e. number 3, in Oldham's 9-10 defeat by Wigan in the 1908 Lancashire County Cup Final during the 1908–09 season at Wheater's Field, Broughton, Salford on Saturday 19 December 1908. Smith played , i.e. number 5, in Oldham's 3-7 defeat by Wigan in the Championship Final during the 1908–09 season at The Willows, Salford on Saturday 1 May 1909. By 1912 Smith had moved into the forwards and played at second row. Smith played for the club until 1916 when a broken leg ended his career. After retirement Smith then joined a textile firm but in 1932 returned to rugby league, being involved in the Oldham coaching staff for three years. He often met touring New Zealand League and All Blacks sides. He lived in Oldham until his death on 7 December 1954. Legacy Smith was posthumously inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. For his role in the birth of international rugby league, the 'George Smith Medal' was minted in 2002 to be awarded to the player of Test series between Great Britain and New Zealand. That year Smith's 92-year-old daughter Edna Stansfield, who was living in Oldham, viewed the medal inspired by her father when she was visited by a director of the New Zealand Rugby League. His son, George Smith, played both rugby codes and died in a Japanese prisoner camp in 1943. Two of Smith's nephews (Dick and Jack), born to his brother Walton, played rugby