After the Canberra Raiders’ heartbreaking qualifying final loss to the Brisbane Broncos, Morgan Smithies faced an unexpected post-game storm claims that he had lost his teeth.
The Raiders’ fiery forward was on the receiving end of a high shot from Broncos star Pat Carrigan midway through the second half.
While Carrigan was sent to the sin bin and ultimately suspended for the high shot, Smithies was left with a bloodied mouth during what will be remembered as one of the greatest NRL finals clashes in recent memory.
As the drama unfolded, fans and commentators speculated that Smithies had gone without a mouthguard, branding him reckless.
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That assumption was wrong, as the English forward had only removed it momentarily to check his teeth.
To clear things up, Smithies reassured everyone that his smile remains perfectly intact.
“I’ve worn a mouthguard ever since I was young, for as long as I can remember,” he said to Code Sports on Tuesday, putting the rumours to bed.
“I was getting loads of messages after the game, people thinking I lost my teeth and stuff like that, but I had a mouthguard in luckily.
“I have all my teeth. I took my mouthguard out to check if my teeth were still in tact but we’re all sweet. Thank god.”