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)	Fédérale 1 (Third division)
1st kit 2nd kit
Official website
www.mtgxv.com

US Montauban were a French rugby union club, which competed in the Top 14 competition between 2007 and 2010, after being promoted from Rugby Pro D2 for the 2006-07 season. They were 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].

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.

Honours

• French championship:
  • Champions: 1967
• Rugby Pro D2:
  • Champions: 2001, 2006
• 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	Spectateurs
28 May 1967	US Montauban	CA Bègles	11-3	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	32.115

Player transfers at the end of the 2009-10 season

• Nick Adams (to Nottingham)
• Grégory Arganese (to Racing Métro)
• Julien Audy (to Bayonne)
• Bogdan Balan (to Lyon)
• Antoine Battut (to Racing Métro)
• Mathieu Bélie (to Brive)
• Abdellatif Boutaty (to Bayonne)
• Alejandro Campos (to Agen)
• Jean-Emmanuel Cassin (to Oyonnax)
• Matthew Clarkin (to Bordeaux Bègles)
• Johan Dalla Riva (to Grenoble)
• Laurent Delboulbes (to Carcassonne)
• Emmanuel Etien (to Carcassonne)
• Silviu Florea (to Bordeaux Bègles)
• Karim Ghezal (to Racing Métro)
• Andrew Henderson (to Newcastle Falcons)
• Rida Jahouer (to Grenoble)
• Joël Koffi (to Carcassonne)
• Julien Laharrague (to Aironi)
• Felix Le Bourhis (to Carcassonne)
• Régis Lespinas (to Brive)
• Mirko Lozupone (to Grenoble)
• Brice Mach (to Agen)
• Scott Murray (to Castres Olympique)
• Shannon Paku (to Manawatu)
• Julien Raynaud (to Toulouse)
• Cédric Rosalen (to Carcassonne)
• Benjamin Sa (to Racing Métro)
• Romain Sazy (to La Rochelle)
• Béka Sheklashvili (to Agen)
• Goderdzi Shvelidze (to Montpellier)
• Jean-Philippe Viard (to Valence d'Agen)

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

• USM Rugby - 100 photos pour un centenaire, 2003

External links

• (French) Official site