 His strong scrummaging and good hands alongside many other great team performances ensured that the Lions won over their much more highly fancied hosts and won the series 2–1.He was also selected in the 2001 Lions tour of Australia and played all three test matches of that series also to become the only Scot to play the six consecutive Lions tests matches of 1997 and 2001 when he played against Australia.For the next eight-years Smith was to be a first choice starter for Scotland and talismanic figure for the team winning the Five Nations in 1999 and captaining the side throughout the 2001 Autumn Internationals.