US Montauban

US Montauban

Full name	Union Sportive Montalbanaise
Union	Fédération Française de Rugby
Founded	1903
Location	Montauban, France
Ground(s)	Stade Sapiac (Capacity: 11,500)
President	Robert Gomes
Coach(es)	Sébastien Calvet
League(s)	Pro D2
2013–14	Champion of Fédérale 1, promoted
1st kit 2nd kit
Official website
www.mtgxv.com

US Montauban is a French rugby union club that currently competes in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system. They have also competed at the top level, Top 14, in the past, most recently between 2007 and 2010. The club is based in Montauban in the département of Tarn-et-Garonne in Midi-Pyrénées.

In April 2010, it was announced the club would be relegated from the Top 14 to the Rugby Pro D2 at the end of the 2009/2010 season after breaking budget rules for the league. Although the club appealed the ruling it started to release players to reduce its budget.^[1] The club was not in the relegation zone at the time, thereby saving CS Bourgoin-Jallieu, Aviron Bayonnais and Montpellier Hérault RC a nervous run in as they were in the relegation battle with Montauban. On the 26 April 2010, the club filed for bankruptcy at a commercial court following a meeting of the club's board of directors.^[2]

On 24 May 2014, it was announced that they had won promotion back to Pro D2 for the 2014–15 season as a result of winning the Fédérale 1 semi-final 35 – 12 against Lille Métropole Rugby.^[3] They went on to win the Fédérale 1 title, defeating Massy 18–14 in the final ^[4]

History

The club was established in 1903. The club made its first championship appearance in the 1967 season, when it captured its first championship title, defeating CA Bègles 11 points to 3 in Bordeaux. It gained promotion from Pro D2 for the 2006-07 season.

In its first match of the 2006-07 season, Montauban defeated Narbonne 41-20, gaining five points (including a bonus point) to go to second in the table after round one. The team continued in surprisingly strong form for a newly promoted team, notably handing early runaway league leaders Stade Français their first defeat of the season, 15-9, in Round 10 on 6 October. Montauban ended the season in seventh place, a respectable position for a newly promoted team. The 2007-08 season saw it consolidate its Top 14 position, again finishing seventh. Because Toulouse advanced to the final of the that year's Heineken Cup, which was farther than any team from England or Italy, Montauban was given a place in the 2008-09 Heineken Cup, pooled with champions Munster.

Current standings

2015–16 Rugby Pro D2 Table
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Diff	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Lyon	7	6	0	1	211	124	+87	2	1	27
2	Aurillac	7	5	0	2	231	161	+70	3	1	24
3	Bayonne	7	5	0	2	184	163	+21	1	1	22
4	Perpignan	7	5	0	2	170	120	+50	0	2	22
5	Albi	7	4	0	3	139	138	+1	1	1	18
6	Béziers	7	4	0	3	187	161	+26	0	1	17
7	Colomiers	7	4	0	3	153	156	–3	1	0	17
8	Mont De Marsan	7	3	0	4	162	132	+30	1	3	16
9	Narbonne	7	3	0	4	146	154	–8	0	2	14
10	Montauban	7	3	0	4	137	176	−39	0	2	14
11	Tarbes	7	3	0	4	140	151	–11	0	1	13
12	Dax	7	3	0	4	150	178	–28	0	1	13
13	Provence Rugby	7	3	0	4	132	175	−43	0	0	12
14	Bourgoin	7	2	0	5	129	151	−22	0	3	11
15	Carcassonne	7	2	0	5	120	207	–87	0	1	9
16	Biarritz	7	1	0	6	109	153	−44	0	2	6
Green background (row 1) Champions automatically promoted to Top 14. Blue background denotes teams that qualify for the promotion play-offs. Red background relegation to Fédérale 1. Note: When two teams have the same points total, position is calculated by results between teams before points difference.

Current squad

2015-16 Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.

Player Position Union Clément Bourgeois Hooker France Mickaël Ladhuie Hooker France Jordan Rochier Hooker France Nicolas Agnesi Prop France Sofiane Chellat Prop France Victor Damian Arias Prop Argentina Teva Make Prop France Terry Philippart Prop France Elvis Tekassala Prop France Damien Tussac Prop Germany Olivier Caisso Lock France Pierrick Esclauze Lock France Simon Pinet Lock France Sergei Sergueev Lock Russia Ben Venter Lock South Africa Pierre Barthère Flanker France Amédée Domenech Flanker France Gautier Gibouin Flanker Spain Stephane Munoz Flanker France Fred Quercy Flanker France Richard Haddon Number 8 New Zealand Dimitri Vaotoa Number 8 France

Player Position Union David Brynes Scrum-half South Africa Jeremy Chaput Scrum-half France Frederic Urruty Scrum-half France Thomas Fortunel Fly-half France Antoine Lescalmel Fly-half France Maxime Mathy Fly-half France Florent Domenech Centre France Juan Mangione Centre Argentina Baptiste Perrot Centre France Taleta Tupuola Centre France Sebastien Ascarat Wing France Vunga Lilo Wing Tonga Yan Ruel Gallay Wing France Lucas Tolot Wing France Samisoni Viriviri Wing Fiji Eric Tafernaberry Fullback France Loris Tolot Fullback France

Honours

• French championship:
  • Champions: 1967
• Rugby Pro D2:
  • Champions: 2001, 2006
• Fédérale 1
  • Champions (Trophée Jean-Prat): 2014
• Challenge de l'Espérance:
  • Champions: 1967
• Challenge Antoine Béguère:
  • Champions: 1971
• Challenge Armand Vaquerin:
  • Champions: 2005
  • Runners-up: 2004

Finals results

French championship

Date	Winner	Runner-up	Score	Venue	Attendance
28 May 1967	US Montauban	CA Bègles	11-3	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	32,115

Trophée Jean-Prat

Date	Winner	Runner-up	Score	Venue	Attendance
7 June 2014	US Montauban	RC Massy	18-14	Stade Jean-Antoine Moueix, Libourne	4,500

References

1. http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,9818_6079678,00.html
2. http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/30042010/58/top-14-montauban-file-bankruptcy.html
3. "Demi-finale Fédérale 1 - Massy et Montauban retrouvent la Pro D2" (in French). Midi Olympique. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
4. "Rugby: Montauban champion de France de Fédérale 1". L'Équipe (in French). 7 June 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2014.

• USM Rugby - 100 photos pour un centenaire, 2003

External links

• (French) Official site