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Vincent Clerc

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Vincent Clerc
Date of birth (1981-05-07) 7 May 1981 (age 43)
Place of birthÉchirolles, France
Height1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight90 kg (14 st 2 lb; 198 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1998–2002 Grenoble 315 (640)
2002–2016 Toulouse 13 (15)
2016–2018 Toulon ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2002–2013 France 67 (170)34t
Medal record
Men's Rugby union
Representing  France
Rugby World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2011 New Zealand Squad

Vincent Clerc (born 7 May 1981) is a former French professional rugby union player who played on the wing.

Birth and early career

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Born in the city of Échirolles, suburb of the south of Grenoble (Isère), Clerc first played rugby at FC Grenoble, helping them reach the Top 16 before moving to Toulouse in 2002, where he played until 2016. Clerc earned his first cap for France on November 9, 2002 against South Africa. Whilst at Toulouse Clerc won the Heineken Cup three times in 2003, 2005 and 2010. In the 2003 final he scored Toulouse's try as they defeated Perpignan.[1][2][3]

2007 to 2010

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Clerc was left out of the French squad for the 2006 Autumn Internationals, but was called up as a replacement for Cédric Heymans for the match against Ireland during the 2007 Six Nations Championship.[4] In a closely contested match at Croke Park, Clerc scored a last-gasp try to snatch a 20–17 victory for France.[5]

Clerc was picked for the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

He scored 5 tries during the first two games of the 2008 Six Nations Championship against Scotland and Ireland. In a post-match interview after the match against Ireland Clerc stated to the French TV channel France 2 that he "never would have been able to score a hat-trick if Shane Horgan had been playing." Horgan and Clerc have had a long rivalry and, unfortunately for Ireland, Horgan was unfit to play. In the 2007 RBS 6 Nations tournament Vincent scored a last gasp try against Ireland. In the last game of that series of games Vincent Clerc helped France to trounce Scotland to give them the title.

During the 2008 6 Nations, media attention focused on the final match of the tournament, where Clerc and Shane Williams would play as opposite numbers. Both had scored five tries so far in the tournament, but ultimately the match, dubbed as the "Big battle of the little people" was won by Wales, with Williams scoring one final try in the competition.

Clerc ruptured the ligaments in his left knee while playing for Stade Toulousain against ASM Clermont Auvergne in April 2008. He made his club comeback in December 2008, against Mont-de-Marsan, and was recalled to the national squad for the summer 2009 tests.

In 2010, he was selected in the French Barbarians squad to play Tonga on November 26.

2011 to present

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Clerc was selected in the squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, and was one of the stars of the tournament. He played every game for France and posed a constant threat on the right wing. He scored six tries for the tournament, three of them against Canada, to finish the tournament as joint top try-scorer with England's Chris Ashton.[6]

On November 17, 2012, against Argentina in Lille, Clerc scored two tries to take his overall international tally to 34 tries, overtaking Philippe Saint-André to become France's second highest try scorer. France won 39–22. Clerc said after the match:

We got off to a bad start, which is a bad habit of ours. However, we fought back and turned it round after 15 minutes. We could have scored a few more tries but we will take this. Will I ever play again after passing Philippe's mark? I hope so but I will have to talk to him![7]

Life outside of rugby

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Clerc is involved with the Toulouse-based charity Maison des Parents, which works alongside parents and their children, who suffer from illnesses and are being treated in Toulouse.

International tries

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# Date Venue Opponent Result (France-...) Competition
1. 9 November 2002 Stade Vélodrome, Marseille, France  South Africa
30–10
Test Match
2. 23 November 2002 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Canada
35–3
Test Match
3. 23 November 2002 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Canada
35–3
Test Match
4. 29 March 2003 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Wales
33–5
Six Nations Championship
5. 14 February 2004 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
35–17
Six Nations Championship
6. 19 November 2005 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  Tonga
35–17
Test Match
7. 19 November 2005 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  Tonga
35–17
Test Match
8. 24 June 2006 Newlands Stadium, Cape Town, South Africa  South Africa
36–26
Test Match
9. 11 February 2007 Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland  Ireland
20–17
Six Nations Championship
10. 16 September 2007 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  Namibia
87–10
2007 Rugby World Cup
11. 16 September 2007 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  Namibia
87–10
2007 Rugby World Cup
12. 16 September 2007 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  Namibia
87–10
2007 Rugby World Cup
13. 21 September 2007 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
25–3
2007 Rugby World Cup
14. 21 September 2007 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
25–3
2007 Rugby World Cup
15. 3 February 2008 Murrayfield, Edinburgh, Scotland  Scotland
27–6
Six Nations Championship
16. 3 February 2008 Murrayfield, Edinburgh, Scotland  Scotland
27–6
Six Nations Championship
17. 9 February 2008 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
26–21
Six Nations Championship
18. 9 February 2008 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
26–21
Six Nations Championship
19. 9 February 2008 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Ireland
26–21
Six Nations Championship
20. 13 November 2009 Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France  South Africa
20–13
Test Match
21. 21 November 2009 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Samoa
43–5
Test Match
22. 12 March 2011 Stadio Flaminio, Roma, Italy  Italy
21–22
Six Nations Championship
23. 19 March 2011 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Wales
28–9
Six Nations Championship
24. 13 August 2011 Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux, France  Ireland
19–12
Test Match
25. 10 September 2011 North Harbour Stadium, North Shore City, New Zealand  Japan
47–21
2011 Rugby World Cup
26. 18 September 2011 McLean Park, Napier, New Zealand  Canada
46–19
2011 Rugby World Cup
27. 18 September 2011 McLean Park, Napier, New Zealand  Canada
46–19
2011 Rugby World Cup
28. 18 September 2011 McLean Park, Napier, New Zealand  Canada
46–19
2011 Rugby World Cup
29. 1 October 2011 Westpac Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand  Tonga
14–19
2011 Rugby World Cup
30. 6 October 2011 Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand  England
19–12
2011 Rugby World Cup
31. 4 February 2012 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France  Italy
30–12
Six Nations Championship
32. 20 November 2012 Grand Stade Lille Métropole, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France  Argentina
39–22
Test Match
33. 20 November 2012 Grand Stade Lille Métropole, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France  Argentina
39–22
Test Match

Honours

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Toulouse

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France

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References

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  1. ^ "Toulouse regain European crown". BBC. 24 May 2003. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  2. ^ "Stade Francais 12-18 Toulouse". BBC. 22 May 2005. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  3. ^ "Biarritz 19-21 Toulouse". BBC. 22 May 2010. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  4. ^ "Clerc targets RWC berth". ESPN Scrum. 8 February 2007.
  5. ^ "Ireland denied by last-gasp Clerc try". The Telegraph. 11 February 2007.
  6. ^ Hamilton, Tom (24 October 2011). "ESPNscrum's RWC 2011 Team of the Tournament".
  7. ^ "Clerc brace sees off gallant Pumas". 18 November 2012.
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