USA Perpignan

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Perpignan
Full name	L'Union Sportive Arlequins Perpignan
Founded	1902
Location	Perpignan, France
Ground	Stade Aimé Giral
Capacity	13,000
President	Marcel Dagrenat
Coach	Philippe Boher and Franck Azéma
League	Top 14
2005-06	4th
Home colours		Away colours
Official Website
www.usap.fr

Union Sportive Arlequins Perpignan (French) or Unió Esportiva Arlequins de Perpinyà (Catalan), generally abbreviated as USAP in both languages, is a Catalan French rugby union club that plays in the city of Perpignan in Pyrénées-Orientales. It currently competes in the Top 14, the top level of the French league system.

Founded in 1902 as AS Perpignan, renamed US Perpignan in 1919 and finally USA Perpignan in 1933. They play at Stade Aimé Giral (capacity 13,000). They wear the red and gold of the Catalan flag. Like FC Barcelona in Southern Catalonia in Spain, USAP is a Catalan nationalist icon in Northern Catalonia in France.

Contents 1 History 2 Club honors 3 Finals results 3.1 French championship 3.2 Heineken Cup 4 Current squad 5 Famous players 6 Former players 7 External links

[edit] History

The club was established in 1902 as AS Perpignan. It would be in 1914 that the club would go on to make its first ever final appearance. On May 3, Perpignan players defeated Stadoceste Tarbais eight points to seven at Stade des Ponts Jumeaux in Toulouse in front of 15,000 people. Several of these champions were killed some months later in World War I and, to honour their sacrifice, it was decided to colour USAP jersey like a Poilu uniform.

Four years after the championship in 1914, the club was renamed as US Perpignan. Under the new club name, US Perpignan made it to the final of the French championship three seasons after the change. On the 17th of April in 1921, Perpignan defeated Stade Toulousain five points to nil at Parc des Sports de Sauclières in Béziers and thus claiming their second premierhsip. Three seasons later, the finalists of 1921 would meet again in the final of 1924, though this time Toulouse won the game, three points to nil in Bordeaux.

The success continued throughout the 1920s, and following the final defeat of the 1934 season, US Perpignan were able to make it to the final of the 1925 season. They faced AS Carcassonne in Narbonne, and defeated them five points to nil to win the 1925 premiership. For the third season in a row, US Perpignan made it to the final. The opponents were Stade Toulousain once again, the two sides had each defeated each other once in a final in recent years. Toulouse won 11 points to nil in Bordeaux. After the prominent dominance in the mid 1920s, Perpignan did not make any more final appearances after 1926.

Nearly a decade passed before Perpignan made another final appearance. It was the 1935 season that Perpignan faced off against Biarritz at Stade des Ponts Jumeaux in Toulouse on the 12th of May. Biarritz won the match three to nil. That season they also won the Challenge Yves-of-Manor. Three seasons later Perpignan were again involved in the premiership final, again against the Biarritz team. The final was played on May 8, and this time, Perpignan defeated Biarritz, winning 11 points to six to claim their first premiership since 1921. They were also runner-ups of the Challenge Yves-of-Manor that same season as well.

The success continued throughout the late 1930s, with Perpignan again being runner-ups of the Challenge Yves-of-Manor in 1936. It was also the 1936 season that Biarritz and Perpignan would face off in the premiership. Both of Perpignan's last two final appearances were against Biarritz, and both Perpignan and Biarritz had won one each against each other. The final took place on April 30, and Biarritz turned out to be victorious, defeating Perpignan six points to nil. Two years later, Perpignan were in the final of the Challenge Yves-of-Manor, but became runners-up.

Their next final appearance would not be until the season of 1944. Perpignan played Aviron Bayonnais at Parc des Princes in Paris on the 26th of March to decide who would be the champions of France. Perpignan won, defeating Aviron Bayonnais 20 points to five, claiming their first premiership since 1938.

Perpignan would have to wait another eight years until they would make it to the final again. In the 1952 season, Perpignan met FC Lourdes in the final at Stadium Municipal in Toulouse, where they went down to FC Lourdes 20 points to 11. However, both sides would meet in another final three years later to decide the 1955 premiership. This time Perpignan emerged victorious, defeating FC Lourdes 11 points to six in Bordeaux. Perpignan also won the Challenge Yves-of-Manor during the 1955 season, and were runner-ups the following year as well.

Perpignan won the Challenge Yves-of-Manor in 1965, but made their first final appearance 20 years after 1955, to decide the 1977 season premiership. They met AS Béziers in the final, who defeated Perpignan 12 to four at Parc des Princes. Perpignan won the Challenge Yves-of-Manor in 1994, but they would next appear in the final in 1998, where they went down to Stade Français 34 points to seven in Paris in front of 78,000 people.

In 2002, the club entered into a partnership with the University of Barcelona Rugby Club, hence renaming them USAP Barcelona, which compete in the División de Honor, the national premiership in Spain. Perpignan made it to the 2004 final, where they met Stade Français, who defeated them in the 1998 final. Stade Français won again, 38 points to 20 at Stade de France in front of 79,722 people.

In European competition, USAP reached the final stage in 2003 (losing 21-17 to Toulouse in Dublin Lansdowne Road) after losing a 1999 semi-final in Toulouse Stadium against Colomiers. They were beaten in quarter-final in Lansdowne Road again in 2006 by eventual winners Munster. Perpignan was never entitled to play a knock-out European match in Aimé-Giral in ERC history.

[edit] Club honors

• French premiership
  • Champions: 1914, 1921, 1925, 1938, 1944, 1955
  • Runners-up: 1998, 2004

• Challenge Yves du Manoir
  • Champions: 1935, 1955, 1994
  • Runners-up:1936, 1937, 1938, 1956, 1965

• Heineken Cup
  • Runners-ups: 2003

[edit] Finals results

[edit] French championship

Date	Winner	Runner-up	Score	Venue	Attendance
3 May 1914	AS Perpignan	Stadoceste Tarbais	8-7	Stade des Ponts Jumeaux, Toulouse	15.000
17 April 1921	US Perpignan	Stade Toulousain	5-0	Parc des Sports de Sauclières, Béziers	20.000
27 April 1924	Stade Toulousain	US Perpignan	3-0	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	20.000
3 May 1925	US Perpignan	AS Carcassonne	5-0	Maraussan, Narbonne	20.000
2 May 1926	Stade Toulousain	US Perpignan	11-0	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	25.000
12 May 1935	Biarritz Olympique	USA Perpignan	3-0	Stade des Ponts Jumeaux, Toulouse	23.000
8 May 1938	USA Perpignan	Biarritz Olympique	11-6	Stade des Ponts Jumeaux, Toulouse	24.600
30 April 1939	Biarritz Olympique	USA Perpignan	6-0 AP	Stade des Ponts Jumeaux, Toulouse	23.000
26 March 1944	USA Perpignan	Aviron Bayonnais	20-5	Parc des Princes, Paris	35.000
4 May 1952	FC Lourdes	USA Perpignan	20-11	Stadium Municipal, Toulouse	32.500
22 May 1955	USA Perpignan	FC Lourdes	11-6	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	39.764
29 May 1977	AS Béziers	USA Perpignan	12-4	Parc des Princes, Paris	41.821
16 May 1998	Stade Français	USA Perpignan	34-7	Stade de France, Saint-Denis	78.000
26 June 2004	Stade Français	USA Perpignan	38-20	Stade de France, Saint-Denis	79.722

[edit] Heineken Cup

Date	Winner	Runner-up	Score	Venue	Attendance
24 May 2003	Stade Toulousain	USA Perpignan	22-17	Lansdowne Road, Dublin	28.600

[edit] Current squad

Nat. Position Player CE Federico Martin Aramburu LK Rimas Alvarez-Kairelis WG Pascal Bomati N8 Guillaume Bortolaso WG Mathieu Bourret PR Sébastian Bozzi CE Sébastien Chobet FL Grégory Le Corvec PR Vincent Debaty SH Sylvain Dupuy SH Nicolas Durand FH Manuel Edmonds PR Perry Freshwater LK Colin Gaston LK Bernard Goutta CE Jean-Philippe Grandclaude PR Guilhem Guirado CE Akrem Hamdi

Nat. Position Player LK Nathan Hines CE Gavin Hume HK Michel Konieck WG Julien Laharrague FH Nicolas Laharrague CE Christophe Manas CE David Marty PR Nicolas Mas SH David Mele FH Steve Meyer WG Samueli Naulu LK Olivier Olibeau FL Richard Parks FL Jean-Pierre Perez FH Jérôme Porical PR Jérôme Schuster CE Andre Snyman HK Marius Tincu FL Ovidiu Tonita LK Viliami Vaki

[edit] Famous players

• Perry Freshwater (England)
• Daniel Herbert (Australia)
• Nathan Hines (Scotland)
• Ramiro Pez (Italy)
• Viliami Vaki (Tonga)

[edit] Former players

• Thierry Lacroix (France)
• Dan Luger (England)

[edit] External links

• Official site (French)/(Catalan)
• Official Fans site of Perpignan in Paris (French)
• USAP Barcelona Brother rugby union club in Barcelona (Catalan)
• Angelets de la Terra - Catalanist fan site
• Data, results, etc

Sport in the Catalan-speaking world v • d • e

National: Andorran Football Federation| Andorra national football team | Catalonia Football Federation | Catalonia national football team Club: FC Barcelona | RCD Espanyol de Barcelona | CE Sabadell | Gimnàstic de Tarragona | València CF | RCD Mallorca | Levante UD | Vila-real CF | Winterthur FCB | DKV Joventut | Akasvayu Girona | Ricoh Manresa | Pamesa València | Etosa Alacant | ViveMenorca | USA Perpinyà | Les Catalans