Rugby Club CERN
 | ||
| Full name | Rugby Club CERN - Meyrin - St Genis | |
|---|---|---|
| Union | Fédération Suisse de Rugby A.C.G.R. | |
| Founded | 1965 | |
| Location | Geneva, Switzerland | |
| Ground(s) | Stade des Serves 46°14′21″N 6°02′14″E / 46.2393°N 6.0371°E Stade de Meyrin 46°14′00″N 6°04′15″E / 46.233352°N 6.07081°E | |
| President |  Grégory Bertrand | |
| Coach(es) |  Sebastian Frunza, Ioan Doja | |
| Captain(s) | Rémy Henry | |
| League(s) | Swiss 1st Division | |
| 2012-13 | 4th | |
| ||
| Official website | ||
| www | ||
Rugby Club CERN - Meyrin - St Genis (RC CMSG) are an amateur Swiss rugby union club situated on the French–Swiss border, 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) northwest of Geneva. The club plays in the Swiss first division where it is one of the most successful teams in the league's history, behind Hermance RRC.[1]
Club history
RC CMSG was formed as Rugby Club du CERN (Rugby Club of CERN) in 1965,[2] making it the oldest club currently playing in Switzerland. The earliest recorded match in Switzerland was in 1869 and if they were still in existence, Lausanne RFC could have claimed to be as old as Blackheath.[3] The club was originally formed by staff of CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) in around 1960, playing against other companies and organizations in the Geneva area. In 1970, RC CERN organised a memorial competition, Challenge Laurent Membrez,[4] in honor of Laurent Membrez, the founder of Albaladejo Rugby Club.[5] This led to the creation of the Swiss Rugby Federation in 1972 with the then president of RC CERN, André Cordaillat, becoming the federation's first president.[6] In 1984, the club moved to its present ground just across the border in Saint-Genis-Pouilly, France; despite being officially renamed to Rugby Club CERN - St Genis, it was still referred to as RC CERN. Then in 2003 the club merged with the successful Ecole de rugby Meyrin (Meyrin Rugby School), creating the present Rugby Club CERN - Meyrin - St Genis with two stadiums, one in France and one in Switzerland. In 2005, the Wildcats, RC CMSG's women's rugby team, were created, adding to the growth of women's rugby in Switzerland.
After the creation of the Swiss Federation, the club enjoyed considerable success, winning both the Swiss Championship and Swiss Cup repeatedly. In the early 1990s, the fortunes of the club started to change and their successes became less frequent, with the club eventually being relegated to the second division in 1994. The club regained promotion a couple of years later but were only to remain in the first division for a further two years. After a dispute between players, coaches and management, the president removed the club from all competitions. In the autumn of 2000, a new management took control of the club, bringing in ex-Ireland A,[7] Northampton and Gloucester[8] second row, John Etheridge, in as coach. The club then won the third and second divisions in consecutive years, but were unable to stay in the first division, and after the second relegation from the first division, Etheridge left the club. In 2008, RC CMSG appointed Claude Ezoua, who took the Ivory Coast rugby team to the 1995 Rugby World Cup, as head coach. The club then achieved promotion back to the first division in the 2008–2009 season, losing only one game in the whole season, with the club managing to stay in the first division during the 2009–2010 season for the first time in 15 years. Since 2010, RC CMSG has slowly been climbing back to the top of table, each season finishing higher than the previous, and making the knock-out stages for the past three seasons. By finishing fourth of the regular season in 2012-13, the club claimed a home quarter-final, only for a last minute 50-meter kick to hit the post, and lose by a point. Season 2013-14 started with the club winning its first four games in a row, and ending up in 2nd position before the winter break with 7 wins, one defeat, one draw. A difficult second half of the season saw us miss out on the playoffs, which are now played by the top four teams (out of ten) - finishing 6th. The first team went out in the quarter finals of the Swiss Cup (first beating Winterthur, then losing to Geneva PLO). The second team went all the way to the semi final in the FSR Cup, only losing by a few points to PLO's 2nds who eventually won.
2014-15 started with the loss of over 8 key first team players, a difficult blow to the club. We were joined by ex-Romania national squad captain Ioan Doja (played at the World Cup, played for Oyonnax, player-coach at Nantua), to work with coach Sebastian Frunza, now in his fourth year at the helm. The first half of 2014 saw mixed results, with 4 wins and 6 defeats, and the club headed into the winter break just above the relegation bar in 8th position.
The January 2015 General Assembly voted in new club president Grégory Bertrand, long time club player and servant.
Club honours
| Competitions | Years |
|---|---|
| Swiss Champions (NLA) | 1974, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1989, 1990, 1991 |
| Swiss Cup | 1973, 1974, 1977, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992 |
| Federation Cup | 1975, 1991 |
| Second Division Champions (NLB) | 1998, 2002, 2009 |
| Third Division Champions (NLC) | 2001 |
Current 1st team Squad
Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
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Presidents
| 1965 – 1972 | André Cordaillat |
| 1972 – 1975 | Michael Gamble |
| 1976 – 1991 | Jacques Morand |
| 1992 - 1993 | Pascal Mesenge |
| 1994 - 1995 | Neil Calder |
| 1996 - 1998 | Henri Masseboeuf |
| 1999 - 2000 | Roger Girardot |
| 2001 - 2003 | Ray Veness |
| 2004 | Matteo Mazzanti |
| 2005 - 2015 | Peter MacAvock |
| 2015 - | Grégory Bertrand |
Coaches
Men
| 1965 – 1999 | ? | |
| 2000 - 2007 | John Etheridge 
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| 2007 - 2008 | Ali Day 
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Damian Moore
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| 2008 - 2010 | Claude Ezoua 
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Ali Day
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| 2010 - 2011 | Ali Day
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Gianni Di Martino 
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| 2011 - 2014 | Sebastien Frunza
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Yann Mauvoisin
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| 2014 - 2015 | Sebastien Frunza
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Ioan Doja
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Women (Wildcats)
| 2005 | Paul Clements-Hunt
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| 2005 - 2007 | Ali Day
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| 2007 - 2008 | Gianni Di Martino
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| 2008 - | Moyenda Chaponda 
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See also
References
- ^ http://www.lerugbysuisse.ch/liguea/liguea-champions.html
- ^ http://www.lerugbysuisse.ch/statistiquesclub/statistiqueclubs.html
- ^ Bath, Richard (ed.) The Complete Book of Rugby (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 ISBN 978-1-86200-013-1) p 75
- ^ http://www.rugbyzurich.ch/teams.php
- ^ http://www.albaladejorugby.com/club.php
- ^ http://www.suisserugby.com/historique,1.html
- ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby-union-field-comes-in-at-centre-for-ireland-malone-mans-debut-1393472.html
- ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby-union-beal-edges-it-for-the-saints-1481824.html