| Date of birth | 17 September 1988 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of birth | Créteil, France | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Weight | 112 kg (17 st 9 lb) | ||
| Rugby union career | |||
| Playing career | |||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Professional / senior clubs | |||
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 2007–2011 2011- |
Stade Français Toulon |
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| National team(s) | |||
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 2009– | France | 9 | (10) |
| correct as of 11 February 2011. | |||
Mathieu Bastareaud (French pronunciation: [matjø bastaʁo]; born 17 September 1988) is a French rugby union centre who plays for Toulon.
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Bastareaud played for Creteil Rugby youth squads and then moved to Massy. He went through the junior academy there and played for the third division club SU Massy. He attracted national attention and after two seasons he moved to European giants Stade Français.
He was included in the 2009 Six Nations Championship squad. He impressed in the match against Wales, which France won 21–16, on 27 February 2009, this was his Six Nations Championship debut. He later played against England and as a replacement against Italy in the same competition. After some very impressive performances for his club, Matthieu was involved in the 2010 Six Nations Championship and was a key figure for the French side. He stood out as an extreme powerhouse as he scored two tries against Scotland at Murrayfield and kept on impressing against Italy and Wales. He was rested for the majority of the game against Italy but was brought on for the last 15 minutes and nearly scored with a 10 metre leg charge.
In July 2011 Mathieu was finally allowed to join Toulon. He had previously declared his wish to leave and with Stade Francais suffering major financial difficulties, (which saw them come close to being relegated) his wish was eventually granted[1]. He signed a 3 year contract.
Bastareaud was included in the French tour to New Zealand and Australia in June 2009, but returned to France early after sustaining facial injuries. He initially claimed that he had been assaulted from behind by "four or five men" outside his Wellington hotel as he was returning from a night out. The New Zealand Police launched an investigation into the assault and turned up security camera footage of Bastareaud returning uninjured to his hotel with four other people at 5:22 am that night, confirming the assault could not have taken place. Bastareaud subsequently stated that he had been drunk and had sustained the injuries after tripping over a table in his hotel room, and that he had concocted the original story in order to avoid getting in trouble with team management.[2][3]
Then on 29 June, L'Equipe reported that he had been admitted to a psychiatric facility after attempting suicide.[4][5] Pierre Camou, President of the French Rugby Federation has referred the case to their Disciplinary Committee and asked them to investigate.[6]
The incident proved to have diplomatic implications. Following the initial assault allegation, international media speculated on New Zealand's security and suitability as a tourist destination and host country , especially leading into the 2011 Rugby World Cup, spurring New Zealand Prime Minister John Key to issue an official apology for the incident.[7][8] Following the later revelations, French Prime Minister François Fillon sent a letter to Key, in which he apologised for the unfortunate affair and spoke of the strong relationship between France and New Zealand, a rare official intervention in sporting issues for the French.[9]
In 2010, he was selected in the French Barbarians squad to play Tonga on 26 November.
French international football player, William Gallas, is Bastareaud's cousin.[10]
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