This article is about the rugby section of AS Béziers. For the defunct football section, see
AS Béziers (football).
Association Sportive Béziers Hérault, often referred to by rugby media simply by its location of Béziers, is a French rugby union club preparing to return to the second tier of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. They earned promotion as 2011 Fédérale 1 champions.[1] The club was founded in 1911.
Béziers was a major force in French rugby throughout the 1970s and 1980s, However, at the end of 2004-05 season they were relegated to Pro D2. After some years playing in French second division, they finished bottom of the table in 2008-09 and were relegated to amateur Fédérale 1.[2] They are based in Béziers in Languedoc and play at Stade de la Méditerranée (capacity 20,000). The club colors are blue and red.
[edit] History
The club was established in 1911. Their first notable honour was being runners-up in the Coupe de France. However it would not be until the 1960s when the club began its rise to prominence. Béziers made their first championship appearance in the 1960 season. On May 22 they faced FC Lourdes in the final, losing 14 points to 11 in Toulouse. Béziers found mixed success during the 1960s following their first championship loss to Lourdes. The next season they won their first championship, defeating US Dax 6 points to 3 in Lyon. They were also runners-up in the Challenge Yves du Manoir that season. They also contested the domestic championship in 1962, though they lost to SU Agen 14 to 11 in the final. Béziers performed well in the 1964 season as well; losing the championship final to Section Paloise, and winning the Challenge Yves du Manoir.
After the success during the early 1960s Béziers became a powerful club in the 1970s. In 1971 Béziers made it to the final of the domestic championship; defeating RC Toulon 15 points to 9 in Bordeaux. The following season Béziers captured the championship, defeating Brive 9 points to nil in Lyon, and winning the Challenge Yves du Manoir as well, winning it again in 1973 as well. The club won championships in 1974 and 1975, defeating RC Narbonne and Brive respectively, both times at Parc des Princes in Paris. They were also involved in the 1976 final, though they lost to Agen, 13 to 10. The following season they won the championship again, defeating Perpignan 12 to 4 in the final. They also won the Challenge Yves du Manoir as well.
The next season they successfully defended their domestic title; defeating AS Montferrand 31 points to 9 in the championship game in Paris. They however did not win back-to-back Challenge Yves du Manoir titles; though they came close, being runners-up. The success continued in the early 1980s as well, winning the championship of the 1980 season, defeating Toulouse 10 to 6 in the final, as well as being Challenge Yves du Manoir runners-up that season. Béziers repeated this again the next season; actually defeating Toulouse in the championship final again, and were runners-up in the Challenge Yves du Manoir. They were champions again in 1983 and 1984, defeating RC Nice and Agen in the finals respectively. They also won the Coupe de France in the 1986 season.
Béziers will return to the professional ranks in 2011–12 following their 13–6 win over Périgueux in the Fédérale 1 final on June 26. Both finalists were assured of promotion to Pro D2.
[edit] Honours
- French championship:
- Champions: 1961, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984
- Runners-up: 1960, 1962, 1964, 1976
- Challenge Yves du Manoir
- Champions: 1964, 1972, 1977
- Runners-up: 1961, 1973, 1978, 1980, 1981
- Coupe de France
- Champions: 1986
- Runners-up: 1950
- Fédérale 1
- Elite 2
[edit] Finals results
[edit] French championship
| Date |
Winner |
Runner-up |
Score |
Venue |
Spectators |
| 22 May 1960 |
FC Lourdes |
AS Béziers |
14-11 |
Stadium Municipal, Toulouse |
37.200 |
| 28 May 1961 |
AS Béziers |
US Dax |
6-3 |
Stade de Gerland, Lyon |
35.000 |
| 27 May 1962 |
SU Agen |
AS Béziers |
14-11 |
Stadium Municipal, Toulouse |
37.705 |
| 24 May 1964 |
Section Paloise |
AS Béziers |
14-0 |
Stadium Municipal, Toulouse |
27.797 |
| 16 May 1971 |
AS Béziers |
RC Toulon |
15-9 AP |
Parc Lescure, Bordeaux |
27.737 |
| 21 May 1972 |
AS Béziers |
CA Brive |
9-0 |
Stade de Gerland, Lyon |
31.161 |
| 12 May 1974 |
AS Béziers |
RC Narbonne |
16-14 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
40.609 |
| 18 May 1975 |
AS Béziers |
CA Brive |
13-12 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
39.991 |
| 23 May 1976 |
SU Agen |
AS Béziers |
13-10 AP |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
40.300 |
| 29 May 1977 |
AS Béziers |
USA Perpignan |
12-4 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
41.821 |
| 28 May 1978 |
AS Béziers |
AS Montferrand |
31-9 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
42.004 |
| 25 May 1980 |
AS Béziers |
Stade Toulousain |
10-6 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
43.350 |
| 23 May 1981 |
AS Béziers |
Stade Bagnérais |
22-13 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
44.106 |
| 28 May 1983 |
AS Béziers |
RC Nice |
14-6 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
43.100 |
| 26 May 1984 |
AS Béziers |
SU Agen |
21-21 |
Parc des Princes, Paris |
44.076 |
[edit] Challenge Yves du Manoir
[edit] Coupe de France
[edit] Trophée Jean-Prat (Fédérale 1)
[edit] Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under IRB eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-IRB nationality.
[edit] Famous players
[edit] External links
[edit] References
|
|
|
| Governing body |
|
|
| National teams |
|
|
| Competitions |
|
|
| Related articles |
|
|
Federico Todeschini
Jye Mullane
Richard Astre
Lasha Malaghuradze
Andrew Mehrtens
Cristian Petre
Salesi Sika
Andy Powell
