Georges Mérignac (10 July 1921 – 30 October 1992) was a New Caledonian footballer who played as a central-defender.

Georges Mérignac
Personal information
Date of birth (1921-07-10)10 July 1921
Place of birth Poya, New Caledonia
Date of death 30 October 1992(1992-10-30) (aged 71)
Position(s) Central-defender
Youth career
Indépendante de Nouméa
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Indépendante de Nouméa
1946–1953 Bordeaux 158 (1)
Total 158 (1)
International career
1939 New Caledonia
Managerial career
New Caledonia
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

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Born in Poya, New Caledonia, to a Melanesian mother and European father, Mérignac spent his childhood between Poya and Nouméa, where he took an interest in tennis, boxing, athletics and football.[1] He worked as a farmer during his time on the islands.[1]

Club career

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Having played football in his native New Caledonia with Indépendante de Nouméa, Mérignac enlisted in the Free French Forces in September 1941, and took part in the Battle of Bir Hakeim in Libya the following year.[1] It was here that he met René Gallice, who had played for French side Bordeaux before the war.[1] Following the conclusion of the Second World War in 1945, Gallice suggested to Bordeaux's coaches, who were looking for a new central-defender, that they sign Mérignac, and the New Caledonian joined the club the following year.[1]

Despite being relegated in his first season with the club, he spent two seasons in the French Division 2, before returning to the French Division 1 for the 1949–50 season, in which Bordeaux won the title.[1] In the same season, he featured in the Latin Cup, where Bordeaux lost in the final to Portuguese side Benfica after an extra-time replay loss following a draw in the first game.[1] He retired in 1953.[1]

International career

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Mérignac represented the New Caledonia national football team in 1939.[1]

Coaching career

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Following his retirement and return to New Caledonia, he managed the national football team.[2]

Death

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Mérignac died in October 1992. In 2007, a sports complex in Tina-sur-Mer in the capital of New Caledonia, Nouméa, was named in his honour.[2]

Career statistics

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Club

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Coupe de France Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Bordeaux 1946–47 French Division 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
1947–48 French Division 2 32 0 4 0 0 0 36 0
1948–49 30 0 1 0 0 0 31 0
1949–50 French Division 1 32 1 0 0 3[a] 0 35 1
1950–51 24 0 1 0 0 0 25 0
1951–52 19 0 3 0 0 0 22 0
1952–53 19 0 1 0 0 0 20 0
Career total 158 1 10 0 3 0 171 1
Notes
  1. ^ Appearances in the Latin Cup

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Georges Mérignac". girondinsretro.fr (in French). Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Georges Mérignac donne son nom au nouveau complexe sportif" [Georges Mérignac gives his name to the new sports complex]. lnc.nc (in French). 27 September 2007. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
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