Steve Smith was a 23-year-old on the brink of the Australian side when he threw in his lot with the rebel tour of South Africa.

A right-hand opener and a good fielder, Smith made his debut for NSW in 1981-82 scoring 245 runs at 40.83; the following summer was even better, and his maiden first-class hundred was a career-best 263 against Victoria. His one-day international debut was equally impressive, scoring a hundred in his third match against New Zealand at Melbourne.

He continued to be a part of the ODI squad, toured Sri Lanka and finally made his Test debut in the Caribbean in 1983-84 but struggled against the West Indies pace barrage, making 41 runs in three Tests. He struggled in 1984-85, possibly weighed down by his decision to tour South Africa, but once there he showed his class with an outstanding hundred in the third "Test" at Johannesburg.

He ended the tour with 1163 runs at 52.86 and was named one of South Africa's Cricketers of the Year. After two more seasons with NSW he moved to the Cape and played out his career with Transvaal.