50 years of rugby in Libreville
50 years of rugby in Libreville - Libreville is the political and administrative capital of Gabon, the first city of the country in number of inhabitants. Thus logically, rugby players' biggest breeding ground of the country ! As the Gabonese Rugby Union is joining Rugby Africa, we are com ing back on the history of one of their flagship club : the RCL
Between 1975 and 1980, driven by "President, coach and player" Pierre Duro, the club was linked to the Football Union which became the Gabonese Football Rugby Union. The first President of this new entity was Dr Lamine Diop, todaydeceased. The Rugby Club of Libreville ( RCL) had been officially created onSeptember 15th, 1960 and was confirmed in the newspaper "Gabonese Republic", page 565, at the same date.
RCL's chairman at this time was Mr Gustave Anguile, Finance Minister, helped in his task by Mr Jean-Pierre Juilla, Vice-President.
During the years 1976 to 1986, the RCL faced teams of the French 3rd division on international matches and recorded no defeat. The RCL during these 10 years was equal as a French 2nd division.
On the African continent, Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Congo, Central African Republic are so many teams that hardly ever beat RCL.
Some results during the season1976 - 1977
YAOUNDE 12 - 9RCLPORT-GENTIL 12 - 54 RCLKINSHASSA 0 - 17 RCLRCL 24 - 3 BRAZZAVILLERCL 40 - 15 PORT-GENTILRCL 63 - 16 UTA PARISRCL 33 - 6 KINSHASSARCL 25 - 18 GABONESE ARMYYAOUNDE 11 - 12 RCLE.E.C.I. ABIDJAN 17 - 19 RCLUTA PARIS 7 - 12 RCLRCL 57 - 22 ARCHIBALL BIARRITZBRAZZAVILLE 17 - 0 RCLPOINTE NOIRE 3 - 37 RCLGABONESE ARMY 4 - 12 RCL
TheXV's values of the RCL
ILove the jerseyII Respect the rulesIIIUnitthe groupIVEnjoy the talent of all the peopleVAdd value to the team VI Identify the leadersVII Organise its defensive networkVIIILearn tosurpass yourselfIXHandle the unpredictableXTake a global viewXI Set up in the durationXII Never give upXIIIStay faithful to your styleXIVLive together outside of the fieldXVKnow how to take a break
Today, the club is still supportby the chairman, Pierre Duro who leads the Gabonese Unionmasterfully
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About Rugby Africa:
Rugby Africa (www.RugbyAfrique.com) is the governing body of rugby in Africa and one of the regional associations under World Rugby. It unites all African countries that play rugby union, rugby sevens, and women’s rugby. Rugby Africa organizes various competitions, including the qualifying tournaments for the Rugby World Cup and the Africa Sevens, a qualifying competition for the Olympic Games. With 39 member unions, Rugby Africa is dedicated to promoting and developing rugby across the continent. World Rugby highlighted Ghana, Nigeria and Zambia as three of the six emerging nations experiencing strong growth in rugby.
