2011–12 Rugby Pro D2 season
Encyclopedia
The 2011–12 Rugby Pro D2
is the current second-level French rugby union
club competition, behind the Top 14, for the 2011–12 season. It runs alongside the 2011–12 Top 14
competition; both competitions are operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR).
The LNR uses a slightly different bonus points system
from that used in most other rugby competitions. It trialled a new system in 2007–08 explicitly designed to prevent a losing team from earning more than one bonus point in a match, a system that also made it impossible for either team to earn a bonus point in a drawn match. LNR chose to continue with this system for subsequent seasons.
France's bonus point system operates as follows:
Rugby Pro D2
Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second level of domestic club rugby union in France, below the first division, Top 14. The competition was introduced in 2000. There is relegation and promotion between both the Top 14 and Fédérale 1, the third-level competition...
is the current second-level French rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
club competition, behind the Top 14, for the 2011–12 season. It runs alongside the 2011–12 Top 14
2011–12 Top 14 season
So far this season, two coaching changes have been made:* Toulon was forced to find a replacement for Philippe Saint-André once he was named to become the new head coach of the France national team, effective 1 December...
competition; both competitions are operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR).
Teams
| Club | |Stadium | |
|---|---|---|
| Pays d'Aix RC Pays d'Aix RC Pays d'Aix RC is a French rugby union club currently playing in Pro D2, the second tier of the country's professional system. They arrived in Pro D2 for the 2009–10 season after earning promotion from the top amateur league, Fédérale 1.... |
Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is... (Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its INSEE and postal code is 13.-History of the department:... ) |
Stade Maurice David Stade Maurice David Stade Maurice David is a multi-purpose stadium in Aix-en-Provence, France that is mainly used for rugby union. It has a capacity of 4,000 and is the home stadium of Pays d'Aix RC, who play in the Pro D2.... |
| SC Albi SC Albi Sporting Club Albigeois is a professional French rugby union club playing the second-level Rugby Pro D2. During the past years it went back and forth between Top 14, the highest level of the French league system and the second-level Rugby Pro D2. Their last time in the Top 14 was for 2009–10 after... |
Albi (Tarn) | Stadium Municipal d'Albi |
| FC Auch FC Auch Gers Football Club Auch Gers is a French rugby union club based in Auch in Midi-Pyrénées currently playing in Rugby Pro D2, the second tier of the country's professional league system. In recent years, they have bounced between the first-level Top 14 and Pro D2... |
Auch Auch Auch is a commune in southwestern France. Located in the region of Midi-Pyrénées, it is the capital of the Gers department. Auch is the historical capital of Gascony.-The Ausci:... (Gers Gers The Gers is a department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France named after the Gers River.Inhabitants are called les Gersois or Gersoises.-History:... ) |
Stade du Moulias Stade du Moulias Stade du Moulias, officially known as Stade Jacques-Fouroux and also known as Stade Patrice-Brocas , is a multi-use stadium in Auch, France. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of FC Auch Gers. The stadium is able to hold 7,000 people.-External links:*... |
| Stade Aurillacois Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne is a French rugby union club, which play in Rugby Pro D2, the second division of French rugby. The club currently play at the Stade Jean Alric, which has a capacity of around 10,000. The club was founded in 1904... |
Aurillac Aurillac Aurillac is a commune in the Auvergne region in south-central France, capital of the Cantal department.Aurillac's inhabitants are called Aurillacois, and are also Cantaliens or Cantalous in Occitan.... (Cantal Cantal Cantal is a department in south-central France. It is named after the Cantal mountain range, a group of extinct, eroded volcanic peaks, which covers much of the department. Residents are known as Cantaliens or Cantalous.... ) |
Stade Jean Alric Stade Jean Alric Stade Jean Alric is a rugby union stadium, in Aurillac, France.It is the home stadium of Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne. The stadium can hold 9,000 people .... |
| AS Béziers Hérault AS Béziers Hérault Association Sportive Béziers Hérault, often referred to by rugby media simply by its location of Béziers, is a French rugby union club preparing to return to the second tier of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. They earned promotion as 2011 Fédérale 1 champions... |
Béziers Béziers Béziers is a town in Languedoc in southern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the Hérault department. Béziers hosts the famous Feria de Béziers, centred around bullfighting, every August. A million visitors are attracted to the five-day event... (Hérault Hérault Hérault is a department in the south of France named after the Hérault river.-History:Hérault is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790... ) |
Stade de la Méditerranée Stade de la Méditerranée Stade de la Méditerranée is a multi-purpose stadium in Béziers, France. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of AS Béziers Hérault. The stadium is able to hold 18,555 people and was built in 1989.... |
| Bourgoin-Jallieu CS Bourgoin-Jallieu CS Bourgoin-Jallieu is a French rugby union club currently competing in the second level of the French league system in the Pro D2. The club have been runners-up in the French championship and the Challenge Yves du Manoir competitions, and have won the Challenge Cup.Founded in 1906 as "Club... |
Bourgoin-Jallieu Bourgoin-Jallieu Bourgoin-Jallieu is a commune in the Isère department of south-eastern France.It lies 35 kilometres to the east-southeast of the city of Lyon. Its inhabitants are called Berjalliens.-Geography:... (Isère Isère Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné... ) |
Stade Pierre Rajon Stade Pierre Rajon Stade Pierre Rajon is a multi-purpose stadium in Bourgoin-Jallieu, France.It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of CS Bourgoin-Jallieu. The stadium can hold 10,000 people.... |
| US Carcassonne US Carcassonne Union Sportive Carcassonnaise are a French rugby union club based in Carcassonne. US Carcassonne currently compete in the Pro D2 of French rugby. The club were established in 1899. They play in black and yellow colours and at the Stade Albert-Domec... |
Carcassonne Carcassonne Carcassonne is a fortified French town in the Aude department, of which it is the prefecture, in the former province of Languedoc.It is divided into the fortified Cité de Carcassonne and the more expansive lower city, the ville basse. Carcassone was founded by the Visigoths in the fifth century,... (Aude Aude Aude is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother... ) |
Albert-Domec Stade d'Albert Domec Stade d'Albert Domec is a multi-use stadium in Carcassonne, France. It has a capacity of 10,000 spectators, and is used mostly for rugby league and rugby union matches. It hosted many matches in various Rugby League World Cups. It has a bronze statue of Carcassonne's most famous player, Puig Aubert.... |
| US Dax US Dax Union Sportive Dacquoise, also known as US Dax, is a French rugby union club currently playing in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the French league system.... |
Dax Dax, Landes Dax is a commune in Aquitaine in south-western France, sub-prefecture of the Landes department.It is particularly famous as a spa, specialising in mud treatment for rheumatism and similar ailments.... (Landes) |
Stade Maurice Boyau Stade Maurice Boyau Stade Maurice Boyau is a multi-use stadium in Dax, France. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of US Dax. The stadium is able to hold 15,000 people. It is named for World War I fighter ace and pre-war French international rugby player Maurice... |
| FC Grenoble FC Grenoble Football Club de Grenoble Alpes Rugby is a French rugby union club which, until recently, competed in the top level of the French league system. They play at Stade Lesdiguières . They wear red and blue.-History:... |
Grenoble Grenoble Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère... (Isère Isère Isère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné... ) |
Stade Lesdiguières Stade Lesdiguières Stade Lesdiguières is a multi-purpose stadium in Grenoble, France. The stadium holds 12,000. It is the home of the FC Grenoble rugby union club.... |
| La Rochelle Atlantique Stade Rochelais Stade Rochelais is a French rugby union club who compete in the Pro D2. They are often known simply as La Rochelle.They were founded in 1898 and play at Stade Marcel-Deflandre . They wear yellow and black... |
La Rochelle La Rochelle La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988... (Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime is a department on the west coast of France named after the Charente River.- History :Previously a part of Saintonge, Charente-Inférieure was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790... ) |
Stade Marcel-Deflandre Stade Marcel-Deflandre Stade Marcel-Deflandre is a sports stadium in La Rochelle, France. It is the home ground of rugby union team Atlantique Stade Rochelais of the Top 14 who have played there since it was opened in 1926. It has undergone significant redevelopment since 1995 and the present capacity is 12,500... |
| Stade Montois Stade Montois Stade Montois is a French rugby union team that plays in the 2011–12 season in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system.They were founded in 1908 and play in yellow and black... |
Mont-de-Marsan Mont-de-Marsan Mont-de-Marsan is a commune and capital of the Landes department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.Mont-de-Marsan airbase « Constantin Rozanoff » is a major installation of the French Air Force. The base includes CEAM , an air defense radar command reporting centre, and an air defence control... (Landes) |
Stade Guy Boniface Stade Guy Boniface Stade Guy Boniface is a multi-use stadium in Mont-de-Marsan, France.It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of Stade Montois, currently playing in the second-tier Pro D2. The stadium can hold 26,100 people and opened in 1965.... |
| RC Narbonne RC Narbonne Racing Club de Narbonne Méditerannée is a French rugby union club that play in the second-level Rugby Pro D2, after finishing at the bottom of the 2006-07 Top 14 table.... |
Narbonne Narbonne Narbonne is a commune in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It lies from Paris in the Aude department, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Once a prosperous port, it is now located about from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea... (Aude Aude Aude is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother... ) |
Parc des Sports Et de l'Amitié Parc des Sports Et de l'Amitié Parc des Sports Et de l'Amitié is a multi-use stadium in Narbonne, France. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of RC Narbonne. The stadium is able to hold 12,000 people and was built in 1979.-References:... |
| Oyonnax Rugby Oyonnax Rugby Union sportive Oyonnax Rugby is a French rugby union club from Oyonnax in the Ain département of the région Rhône-Alpes, currently competing in the second level of the French league system . They play at Stade Charles-Mathon... |
Oyonnax Oyonnax Oyonnax is a commune in the Ain department in the Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.It is the second largest commune in the department. Its residents are known as Oyonnaxiens.-Population:-Miscellaneous:... (Ain Ain Ain is a department named after the Ain River on the eastern edge of France. Being part of the region Rhône-Alpes and bordered by the rivers Saône and Rhône, the department of Ain enjoys a privileged geographic situation... ) |
Stade Charles-Mathon Stade Charles-Mathon Stade Charles-Mathon is a sports stadium located in Oyonnax, France. It is the home of rugby union side Oyonnax Rugby who play in the Pro D2. It has a capacity of around 6,000, but this can be temporarily expanded for visits of major clubs. It was first opened in 1939, and underwent renovations in... |
| Section Paloise Section Paloise Section Paloise is a French rugby union club from Pau in Pyrénées-Atlantiques currently competing in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the French league system.-History:... |
Pau (Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques is a department in the southwest of France which takes its name from the Pyrenees mountains and the Atlantic Ocean.- History :... ) |
Stade du Hameau Stade du Hameau Stade du Hameau is a multi-use stadium in Pau, France. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of Section Paloise and Pau FC. The stadium is able to hold 13,966 people.... |
| CA Périgueux CA Périgueux Club Athlétique Périgueux Dordogne is a French rugby union club that currently competes in the second division of French club rugby, the Pro D2 competition. Périgueux played in the higher divisions in the early 2000s but were relegated from Rugby Pro D2 after the 2004-05 season... |
Périgueux Périgueux Périgueux is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.Périgueux is the prefecture of the department and the capital of the region... (Dordogne Dordogne Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it... ) |
Stade Francis-Rongiéras Stade Francis-Rongiéras Stade Francis-Rongiéras is a multi-purpose stadium in Périgueux, France that is home to rugby union club CA Périgueux. It has a capacity of maximum capacity of 10,000 and opened in 1976. The stadium is name after Francis Rongiéras, a former captain of CA Périgueux that died in 1991 at the age of... |
| Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby is a French rugby union team that currently takes part in Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system.... |
Tarbes Tarbes Tarbes is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.It is part of the historical region of Gascony. It is the second largest metropolitan area of Midi-Pyrénées, with 110,000 inhabitants.... (Hautes-Pyrénées Hautes-Pyrénées Hautes-Pyrénées is a department in southwestern France. It is part of the Midi-Pyrénées region.-History:... ) |
Stade Maurice Trélut Stade Maurice Trélut Stade Maurice Trélut is part of the Tarbes sports complex in Tarbes, France. It comprises a main stadium with a capacity of 16,400 of which 12,000 places are seated. The main stadium is mostly used by the Tarbes french Rugby Union team, Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby who play in the French ProD2 league... |
Competition format
The top team at the end of the regular season (after all the teams played one another twice, once at home, once away), is declared champion and earns a spot in the next Top 14 season. Teams ranked second to fifth compete in promotion playoffs, with the semifinals being played at the home ground of the higher-ranked team. The final is then played on neutral ground, and the winner earned the second ticket to the next Top 14.The LNR uses a slightly different bonus points system
Rugby union bonus points system
The Rugby union bonus points system is a method of deciding table points from a rugby union match. It was implemented in order to encourage attacking play throughout a match, to discourage repetitive goal-kicking, and to reward teams for "coming close" in losing efforts...
from that used in most other rugby competitions. It trialled a new system in 2007–08 explicitly designed to prevent a losing team from earning more than one bonus point in a match, a system that also made it impossible for either team to earn a bonus point in a drawn match. LNR chose to continue with this system for subsequent seasons.
France's bonus point system operates as follows:
- 4 points for a win.
- 2 points for a draw.
- 1 "bonus" point for winning while scoring at least 3 more tries than the opponent. This replaces the standard bonus point for scoring 4 tries regardless of the match result.
- 1 "bonus" point for losing by 7 points (or less).
Season table
Updated as of 07 November 2011| 2010–11 Rugby Pro D2 Table | |||||||||||
| Club | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points for | Points against | Diff | Bonus points | Points | Head-to-head | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oyonnax Oyonnax Rugby Union sportive Oyonnax Rugby is a French rugby union club from Oyonnax in the Ain département of the région Rhône-Alpes, currently competing in the second level of the French league system . They play at Stade Charles-Mathon... |
9 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 201 | 135 | +66 | 3 | 31 | |
| 2 | Dax US Dax Union Sportive Dacquoise, also known as US Dax, is a French rugby union club currently playing in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the French league system.... |
9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 158 | 105 | +53 | 0 | 30 | |
| 3 | Grenoble FC Grenoble Football Club de Grenoble Alpes Rugby is a French rugby union club which, until recently, competed in the top level of the French league system. They play at Stade Lesdiguières . They wear red and blue.-History:... |
9 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 187 | 112 | +75 | 6 | 28 | |
| 4 | La Rochelle Atlantique Stade Rochelais Stade Rochelais is a French rugby union club who compete in the Pro D2. They are often known simply as La Rochelle.They were founded in 1898 and play at Stade Marcel-Deflandre . They wear yellow and black... |
9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 194 | 147 | +47 | 3 | 23 | |
| 5 | Aix-en-Provence Pays d'Aix RC Pays d'Aix RC is a French rugby union club currently playing in Pro D2, the second tier of the country's professional system. They arrived in Pro D2 for the 2009–10 season after earning promotion from the top amateur league, Fédérale 1.... |
8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 163 | 135 | +28 | 3 | 23 | |
| 6 | Carcassonne US Carcassonne Union Sportive Carcassonnaise are a French rugby union club based in Carcassonne. US Carcassonne currently compete in the Pro D2 of French rugby. The club were established in 1899. They play in black and yellow colours and at the Stade Albert-Domec... |
9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 199 | 175 | +24 | 3 | 23 | |
| 7 | Albi SC Albi Sporting Club Albigeois is a professional French rugby union club playing the second-level Rugby Pro D2. During the past years it went back and forth between Top 14, the highest level of the French league system and the second-level Rugby Pro D2. Their last time in the Top 14 was for 2009–10 after... |
9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 185 | 160 | +25 | 6 | 22 | |
| 8 | Pau Section Paloise Section Paloise is a French rugby union club from Pau in Pyrénées-Atlantiques currently competing in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the French league system.-History:... |
9 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 166 | 158 | +8 | 4 | 22 | |
| 9 | Stade Montois Stade Montois Stade Montois is a French rugby union team that plays in the 2011–12 season in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system.They were founded in 1908 and play in yellow and black... |
9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 172 | 186 | -14 | 1 | 21 | |
| 10 | Tarbes Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby Tarbes Pyrénées Rugby is a French rugby union team that currently takes part in Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system.... |
9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 150 | 165 | -15 | 1 | 21 | |
| 11 | Bourgoin CS Bourgoin-Jallieu CS Bourgoin-Jallieu is a French rugby union club currently competing in the second level of the French league system in the Pro D2. The club have been runners-up in the French championship and the Challenge Yves du Manoir competitions, and have won the Challenge Cup.Founded in 1906 as "Club... |
8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 177 | 160 | +17 | 3 | 19 | |
| 12 | Auch FC Auch Gers Football Club Auch Gers is a French rugby union club based in Auch in Midi-Pyrénées currently playing in Rugby Pro D2, the second tier of the country's professional league system. In recent years, they have bounced between the first-level Top 14 and Pro D2... |
9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 117 | 178 | −61 | 2 | 18 | |
| 13 | Aurillac Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne is a French rugby union club, which play in Rugby Pro D2, the second division of French rugby. The club currently play at the Stade Jean Alric, which has a capacity of around 10,000. The club was founded in 1904... |
9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 176 | 192 | −16 | 2 | 16 | |
| 14 | Narbonne RC Narbonne Racing Club de Narbonne Méditerannée is a French rugby union club that play in the second-level Rugby Pro D2, after finishing at the bottom of the 2006-07 Top 14 table.... |
9 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 154 | 224 | −70 | 3 | 15 | |
| 15 | Béziers AS Béziers Hérault Association Sportive Béziers Hérault, often referred to by rugby media simply by its location of Béziers, is a French rugby union club preparing to return to the second tier of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. They earned promotion as 2011 Fédérale 1 champions... |
9 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 124 | 197 | −73 | 2 | 10 | |
| 16 | Périgueux CA Périgueux Club Athlétique Périgueux Dordogne is a French rugby union club that currently competes in the second division of French club rugby, the Pro D2 competition. Périgueux played in the higher divisions in the early 2000s but were relegated from Rugby Pro D2 after the 2004-05 season... |
9 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 109 | 203 | −94 | 5 | 9 | |
| Key to colors | |
| Champions automatically promoted to Top 14 | |
| Winner of playoffs between second- through fifth-place teams for the second promotion place | |
| Remaining participants in promotion playoffs | |
| Bottom two teams relegated to Fédérale 1 Fédérale 1 Le championnat de France de première division fédérale, a.k.a. Fédérale 1, is a French rugby union club competition, the highest level of amateur rugby. The competition has been organised by the Fédération Française de Rugby since 2000, when it replaced the B2 Group... |