Oyonnax Rugby (French pronunciation: [ɔjɔna ʁyɡbi]) is a French professional rugby union club based in Oyonnax and competing in the Top 14. Founded in 1949 and located in the Ain montainous department, the club plays its home matches at the 11,400-capacity Stade Charles-Mathon, the highest stadium in the league at 532 metres (1,745 ft) and wears black and red jerseys.

Oyonnax Rugby
Full nameOyonnax Rugby
Nickname(s)Oyo
Les Oyomen
Les Noir et Rouge (The Black and Reds)
Founded1942; 82 years ago (1942)
LocationOyonnax, France
Ground(s)Stade Charles-Mathon (Capacity: 11,400)
PresidentDougal Bendjaballah
Coach(es)Joe El-Abd
Captain(s)Tommy Raynaud
League(s)Pro D2
2023–24Top 14, 14th (relegated)
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
www.oyonnaxrugby.com

History

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Oyonnax and Sale Sharks at Stade Charles-Mathon in 2013

They were founded in 1909 as Club Sportif Oyonnaxien and were renamed Union Sportive Oyonaxienne in 1940, as sports clubs were forced to unite by the Vichy régime. Oyonnax played in the regional leagues until 1967 when they joined the First Division (64 clubs). They were relegated to the lower divisions a few years later and bounced back to Group B of the First Division (the Second Division in fact) in 1988. Finally, in 2003 they reached the Fédérale 1 final and although they went down to Limoges (18-20), they moved on to the professional Pro D2. In the 2012/13 season, they won Pro D2 and were promoted to the top-flight Top 14. They were repromoted after 2016/17, having been relegated the previous season.[1][2]

Honours

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Current standings

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2023–24 Top 14 Table
Pos Team Pld W D L PF PA PD TF TA TB LB Pts Qualification
1 Toulouse (Q) 26 16 1 9 765 592 +173 103 72 7 3 76 Playoffs and Qualification for 2024–25 European Rugby Champions Cup
2 Stade Français (Q) 26 17 1 8 539 511 +28 57 49 4 1 75
3 Bordeaux Bègles (Q) 26 15 0 11 677 558 +119 80 66 5 4 69
4 Toulon (Q) 26 15 0 11 704 519 +185 72 58 5 4 69
5 La Rochelle (Q) 26 13 1 12 595 496 +99 69 49 5 7 66
6 Racing 92 (Q) 26 13 0 13 622 546 +76 79 56 5 5 62
7 Castres 26 13 0 13 643 642 +1 69 77 4 6 62 Qualification for 2024–25 European Rugby Champions Cup
8 Clermont 26 12 2 12 621 671 −50 74 78 6 3 61
9 Pau 26 13 0 13 630 609 +21 68 72 3 5 60 Qualification for 2024–25 European Rugby Challenge Cup
10 Perpignan 26 13 0 13 634 701 −67 80 85 5 1 58
11 Lyon 26 12 0 14 630 754 −124 72 90 5 2 55
12 Bayonne 26 11 0 15 572 669 −97 65 77 2 6 52
13 Montpellier (Q) 26 9 0 17 542 655 −113 61 79 1 7 44 Qualification for Relegation play-off
14 Oyonnax (R) 26 7 1 18 539 790 −251 58 99 0 4 34 Relegation to Pro D2
Updated to match(es) played on 18 May 2024. Source: Top 14
(Q) Qualified for the playoffs; (R) Relegated


Current squad

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The Oyonnax squad for the 2023–24 season is:[3][4]

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Teddy Durand Hooker   France
Benjamin Gélédan Hooker   France
Peniami Narisia Hooker   Fiji
Antoine Abraham Prop   France
Thibault Berthaud Prop   France
Adrien Bordenave Prop   France
Oli Kebble Prop   Scotland
Ali Oz Prop   France
Paulo Tafili Prop   France
Christopher Vaotoa Prop   France
Phoenix Battye Lock   Australia
Hugo Fabrégue Lock   France
Ewan Johnson Lock   Scotland
Victor Lebas Lock   France
Manuel Leindekar Lock   Uruguay
Loïc Godener Back row   France
Rory Grice Back row   New Zealand
Kévin Kornath Back row   France
Kévin Lebreton Back row   France
Antoine Miquel Back row   France
Wandrille Picault Back row   France
Veresa Ramototabua Back row   Fiji
Player Position Union
Jonathan Ruru Scrum-half   New Zealand
Justin Bouraux Fly-half   France
Zach Holmes Fly-half   Australia
Chris Smith Fly-half   South Africa
Chris Farrell Centre   Ireland
Lucas Mensa Centre   Argentina
Maëlan Rabut Centre   France
Léo Treilles Centre   France
Daniel Ipkefan Wing   France
Karim Qadiri Wing   France
Eddie Sawailau Wing   Fiji
Gavin Stark Wing   New Zealand
Martin Bogado Fullback   Argentina
Maxime Salles Fullback   France
Darren Sweetnam Fullback   Ireland

Espoirs squad

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Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union
Rémi Di Pietro Prop   France
Francesco Gandossi Prop   Italy
Antonin Corso Lock   France
Ronan Bernier Back row   France
Hugo Bongiovanni Back row   France
Hugo Hermet Back row   France
Paul Laulognon Back row   France
David Odiase Back row   Italy
Ignacio Pinerio Back row   Spain
Player Position Union
Yvan David Scrum-half   France
Alexis Pisani Scrum-half   France
Giulio Sari Scrum-half   Italy
Bastien Mercier Fly-half   France
Lorenzo Nanni Centre   Italy
Tomasi Tuitatava Centre   Fiji
Souleymane Coulibaly Wing   France
Thibault Le Gallée Wing   France
Maxime Belleterre Fullback   France
Ethan Clusel Fullback   France
Ethan Thorne Fullback   England
  • Notes:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "L'histoire des Oyomen – OYONNAX RUGBY" (in French). 2024-02-03. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  2. ^ "Oyonnax Rugby Team | Oyonnax News, Players & Stats | RugbyPass". www.rugbypass.com. Retrieved 2024-02-02.
  3. ^ "Effectif" (in French). Oyonnax Rugby. 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Oyonnax squad for season 2023/2024". All Rugby. 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
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