Saint-Paul-des-Landes. Reasons to be optimistic for the RCL. To the credit of the Rugby club des Landes, there are first of all these 185 licensees against 152 in 2023 and 83 in 2022 and its twenty volunteers, a new management team, a nice amalgam of old players and a rising wave of youth and this AuRA League Cup (R2) brought back from Gévaudan after an epic match against Vallée de la Drôme rugby. “It is not the most prestigious but it still marks the life of a club and illustrates a great season”, as Jean Bessière, president of the departmental rugby committee, pointed out at the club’s general meeting.
If the rugby school is experiencing exponential growth and 28 girls in its squad, the ranks of the seniors are also swelling. The observation made by the four co-presidents, Fred Murat, Yannick Printinhac, Thierry Raymond and Géraud Raynal is therefore very optimistic and encourages them to “raise the level of sporting requirements for next season and have a reserve team”, as coaches Nicolas Vors and Nicolas Leder also wish.
The balance is sporty. Before winning the League Cup, the seniors finished 5th e of their championship. The cadet women coached by Géraud Maury in association with Saint-Simon, Saint-Cernin and Arpajon lost in the quarter-finals against the future winner of the Aquitaine league. As for the cadets and juniors associated with Saint-Simon and Arpajon, they are the only ones from Auvergne to qualify at the same time for the final stages and went as far as the quarter-finals.
Finances. Slightly in surplus of €2,500 for a budget almost doubled to around €120,000. Treasurer Sophie Raynal highlighted the contribution of the partnership (€20,000), public subsidies (€8,700) and the success of quine (€3,600).
Projects . The club’s fiftieth anniversary set for September 14th promises many wonderful surprises. Starting this fall, the second pitch will be put into service, the lighting panels and the protection of the posts will be installed. The project to renovate the Prentegarde area with the help of the municipality is confirmed. Jean-Luc Doneys, first assistant, who also took the opportunity to emphasize “the vitality of the club in the pure Saint-Paul tradition, the contribution of the volunteers and this spirit of tolerance and joy of living inspired by rugby.”
