AS Béziers Hérault

Association Sportive Béziers Hérault (Occitan: Associacion Esportiva de Besièrs Erau), often referred to by rugby media simply by its location of Béziers, is a French rugby union club currently playing in the second level of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. They earned their most recent promotion as 2011 Fédérale 1 champions,[1] but the club also won 11 Top 14 titles since its establishment in 1911.

This article is about the rugby section of AS Béziers. For the defunct football section, see AS Béziers (football).
Béziers
UnionFédération Française de Rugby
Founded1911 (1911)
LocationBéziers, France
Ground(s)Stade Raoul-Barrière (Capacity: 18,555)
PresidentCédric Bistué
Coach(es)Manny Edmonds
Christophe Hamacek
League(s)Pro D2
2019–209th
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
www.asbh.net

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] before returning to Pro D2 after their 2011 title. They are based in Béziers in Occitania, and play at Stade Raoul-Barrière (capacity 18,555). The club colors are red and blue.

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. 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 returned to the professional ranks in 2011–12 following their 13–6 win over Périgueux in the 2011 Fédérale 1 final on June 26. Both finalists were assured of promotion to Pro D2.

They struggled in their return season in Pro D2, finishing next-to last on the league table and well out of the safety zone. However, when ninth-place Bourgoin were forcibly relegated to Fédérale 1 for financial reasons,[3] Béziers remained in Pro D2 for 2012–13.

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
    • Champions: 2011
  • Elite 2
    • Champions: 2000
  • coupe d'europe Fira
    • Champions: 1962

Finals results

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

Challenge Yves du Manoir
Year Winner Score Runner-up
1961 Stade Montois 17–8 AS Béziers
1964 AS Béziers 6–3 Section Paloise
1972 AS Béziers 27–6 AS Montferrand
1973 RC Narbonne 13–6 AS Béziers
1977 AS Béziers 19–18 FC Lourdes
1978 RC Narbonne 19–19
(more tries scored)		 AS Béziers
1980 Aviron Bayonnais 16–10 AS Béziers
1981 FC Lourdes 25–13 AS Béziers

Coupe de France
Year Winner Score Runner-up
1950 FC Lourdes 16–3 AS Béziers
1986 AS Béziers 40–9 Stade Aurillacois

Trophée Jean-Prat (Fédérale 1)
Date Winner Score Runner-up Venue Spectators
26 June 2011 AS Béziers 13–6 CA Périgueux Stade Sapiac, Montauban

Current standings

The current table for the 2020–21 Rugby Pro D2 is:[4]

2020–21 Rugby Pro D2 Table
Pos Club Pl W D L PF PA PD TB LB Pts
1Perpignan151203404231+1735154
2Vannes151212348255+932153
3Biarritz14824302252+502341
4Oyonnax14914347285+622141
5Colomiers14815298237+611439
6Nevers15708382324+584436
7Provence14725307305+20032
8Béziers15618308305+31532
9Montauban14617259310–510127
10Aurillac15609257299–4202'26
11Grenoble14518261280–190426
12Carcassonne14518264318–540325
13Rouen15519255303–480123
14Mont-de-Marsan13418226283–571322
15Valence Romans14419269347–780321
16Soyaux Angoulême154011231384–1530218
Legend:
Pos = Position, Pl = Played, W = Won, D = Drawn, L = Lost, PF = Points For, PA = Points Against, PD = Points Difference, TB = Try Bonus Points, LB = Losing Bonus Points, Pts = Points Total
Green background (rows 1 and 2) receive semi-final Promotion play-off places.
Blue background (rows 3 to 6) receive quarter-final Promotion play-off places.
Red background relegation to Nationale.

Notes:
When two teams have the same points total, position is determined by head-to-head results before points difference.

Current squad

The Béziers squad for the 2017–18 Rugby Pro D2 season is:[5]

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
Steve Fualau Hooker Samoa
Dorian Marco-Pena Hooker France
Marco Pinto Ferrer Hooker Spain
Alexandre Betti Prop France
Francisco Fernandes Prop Portugal
Jamie Hagan Prop Ireland
Karim Kouider Prop France
Thimotée Lafon Prop France
Vitolio Manukula Prop France
Quentin Samaran Prop France
Reda Wardi Prop France
Benjamin Desroches Lock France
Morgan Eames Lock England
Tukulua Lokotui Lock Tonga
Yassine Maamry Lock France
Mathias Marie Lock France
Jean-Baptiste Barrère Flanker France
Rémi Bourdeau Flanker France
Thomas Hoarau Flanker France
Tyrone Viiga Flanker Australia
Jonathan Best Number 8 Algeria
Eloi Massot Number 8 France
François Ramonéda Number 8 France
Player Position Union
Julien Blanc Scrum-half France
Paul Champin Scrum-half France
Josh Valentine Scrum-half Australia
Victor Dreuille Fly-half France
Lachie Munro Fly-half New Zealand
Thibauld Suchier Fly-half France
Simon Chevtchenko Centre France
Lucas Daminiani Centre France
Wesley Douglas Centre England
Rodney Iona Centre Australia
Sébastien Max Centre France
Jordan Puletua Centre New Zealand
Robin Aulas Wing France
Sabri Gmir Wing Tunisia
Elijah Niko Wing New Zealand
Monrad Touizni Wing France
Jean-Baptiste Peyras-Loustalet Fullback France
Jérôme Porical Fullback France

Notable former players

See also

References
  1. "Béziers sacré champion". L'Équipe (in French). 2011-06-26. Archived from the original on 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  2. http://www.itsrugby.fr/equipe-beziers.html
  3. Moriarty, Ian (9 August 2012). "Bourgoin wilt under financial pressure". ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  4. "Classement PRO D2". Ligue Nationale de Rugby (in French). Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  5. "Equipe". Association Sportive Béziers Hérault (in French). Archived from the original on 5 September 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
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