Romeo Gontineac

Romeo Gontineac

Date of birth	(1973-12-18) December 18, 1973
Height	1.74 m (5 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Weight	90 kg (198 lb; 14 st 2 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Centre International career Years Team Apps (Points) 1995-2008 Romania 76 (68) Coaching career Years Team 2010–2011 Romania

Romeo Stefan Gontineac (born 18 December 1973 in Hlipiceni, Botoşani) is a former Romanian rugby union player and a current coach. He played as a centre.

Gontineac played for Cluj Napoca (1993/95-1995/96) in Romania, South Western Districts (1996), in South Africa. He moved to France, where he played in FC Grenoble (1996/97), Section Paloise (1997/98) and Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne (1998/99-2009/10), where he finished his career.

Gontineac held 75 caps, from 1997 to 2008, with 13 tries and 1 drop goal scored, 68 points in aggregate. He played all the matches for Romania in four Rugby World Cup finals, in 1995, 1999, 2003 and 2007, in an aggregate of 14 caps. He was also the captain at the last two presences.

He became a coach and was nominated head coach of Romania in 2010, succeeding Serge Lairle of France. Gontineac called upon the services of former All Blacks Steve McDowall to be his assistant coach in the qualifyings the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Romania qualified at the repechage, but disappointed at the finals, being unable to win a single match for the first time since 1995.

External links

• Romeo Gontineac International Statistics