French Championnat National, Group J Normandie
Stade Jean Dasnias, Saint Aubin Sur Scie
Admission : €7.00 (seating)
Programme: Free
Attendance: 1,700
Stade Jean Dasnias, Saint Aubin Sur Scie
Admission : €7.00 (seating)
Programme: Free
Attendance: 1,700
With competitive games drying up in England, and the games that were being played today were either at grounds I had already visited, or I would be at the mercy of intermediate clubs being able to field teams for dead-rubber fixtures, I decided to go abroad for my football fix today, for this derby game in the fifth tier of French football.
After catching the 9 o'clock ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe, and then spending some time along the seafront and the town centre, I then embarked on the 45 minute walk, up a steep hill for part of the way, to the Stade Jean Dasnias, which is located at the far south western extremity of the Dieppe conurbation, with countryside immediately beyond. After passing through quite a long car park, tickets are purchased at a separate small building just outside the entrance gate. Opened in 2006, it is a neat and today ground dominated by an all-seater stand along one length, offering excellent unobstructed views. Small kiosks serving drinks and a small range of club merchandise are located on the concourse above the seating in the outer third sections, while the middle third has cushioned seats, and a hospitality area inside. Outside this stand there is a hot food tent, and around the rest of the ground there is just uncovered hard standing, flat standing behind both goals, and four steps of terracing along the other length, apart from by the half way line, where a basic electronic scoreboard is situated. A ticket to stand anywhere around the ground costs €5.00. Segregation seemed to be in place, with half of the ground and a third of the stand officially designated to visitors, however away fans seemed to be in the majority even in the home area today. Programmes are not commonly produced for games in France, but FC Dieppe certainly come up trumps in this regard, with their 16 page publication available for download from the website, with hard copies seemed to be mainly available only in the hospitality area. It provided a decent preview of the match, in full colour and with photos, messages from the management team and all of the necessary stats.
FC Dieppe have had a fair season overall, coming into this game in seventh place, following ten wins and three draws from their 22 league games, with four league games left to play. They were not in good form though, losing four of their last five league games, although they did beat AS Cherbourg 4-0 in their last home league game, and a good finish to their season could see them finish as high as third - they were only three points adrift before today's games. Only the champions are promoted from this division, and the strong favourites for that berth is today's visitors, as they led the table by eight points with four games remaining, following 15 wins and six draws from their 22 league games. They are in terrific form too, having not lost a league game since the start of November, a run that has yielded 11 wins and four draws. They could clinch the title and promotion today, if they win and second placed Évreux fail to win away at US Avranches B. When these two teams met in the reverse fixture in early January, FC Rouen won 1-0.
On a very chilly, changeable afternoon weatherwise - a heavy hail shower greeted my arrival at the ground, and a couple of showers during the match made me glad to have chosen a seat in the stand, but with prolonged bright sunny spells as well, there was quite a bit of niggle between the players before the match even started, apparently in the tunnel, and then as the Dieppe players moved along the line to shake hands with the Rouen players, there was some pushing and shoving between the players, with the stadium announcer eventually pleading with the players to behave themselves - the officials took no interest in calming things down. There were further similar skirmishes just before kick-off, and during the game. The opening exchanges looked quite promising for Dieppe, but Rouen took the lead with 6 minutes on the clock. Adama Sidibé laid the ball off for Kader N'Chobi, who showed almost unbelievable pace to race past a covering defender, leaving him for dead before running towards the keeper, and then striking the ball past the keeper. And within a couple of minutes, the visitors doubled their lead. Following an attacking free-kick by Dieppe, a quick counter attack saw Abdeljalil Sahloune race forward down the middle, before passing to his left to an unmarked Sidibé, and he slotted the ball past the keeper. And it was virtually game over with just 16 minutes on the clock, once again N'Chobi raced down the left wing, eventually crossing the ball low to Sidibé, who tapped the ball home from a close range, central position. Unsurprisingly, the Dieppe right back was then substituted, after having a really torrid time against the pace of the Rouen forwards. Dieppe had a great chance to equalise on 33 minutes when Cady Pandi intercepted a back pass, passed to Damien Plisson at the edge of the penalty area in a central position, but he fired the ball over the empty goal. No further real chances were created before half time, and so Rouen retained their three goal advantage at the break.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the second half dropped in intensity somewhat, and although Rouen had a few sights at goal, their final shots lacked conviction, and Dieppe kept battling without looking likely to pull a goal back. As the game entered injury time, the visiting supporters broke out in cheering and chanting, as news came through that Évreux had lost at US Avranches B, confirming FC Rouen as champions and with it promotion to National 2, the fourth tier of French football. After the final whistle, the Rouen players celebrated wildly on the pitch, in front of the Rouen fans celebrating in the stand. They were by far the better team today, quicker in every respect than the hosts, for whom this was a rather chastening experience. They do have an opportunity for quick revenge though, as the two clubs will meet here again on Wednesday in the Coupe de Normandie, but that looks a tall order, as there seems to be a real gulf in quality and pace between the two teams. Apparently there were a lot of absences from the Dieppe team today due to injuries and suspensions - they must hope that some of their first teamers return on Wednesday.
And so after spending some time in the hospitality area listening to club president Patrick Coquelet thanking the club's fans and sponsors, and expressing his displeasure at the conduct of some of the Rouen players, I walked back to the town, taking a meandering amble around the town and seafront, eventually arriving at the ferry terminal, to catch the 23.59 ferry back to Newhaven, getting home at just before 5am. This was a most enjoyable day out, and although very long one, at least I was able to get plenty of sleep during the 5 hour crossing home, and it is a journey I would like to do again, to visit other clubs in Upper Normandy region in the future.
On a very chilly, changeable afternoon weatherwise - a heavy hail shower greeted my arrival at the ground, and a couple of showers during the match made me glad to have chosen a seat in the stand, but with prolonged bright sunny spells as well, there was quite a bit of niggle between the players before the match even started, apparently in the tunnel, and then as the Dieppe players moved along the line to shake hands with the Rouen players, there was some pushing and shoving between the players, with the stadium announcer eventually pleading with the players to behave themselves - the officials took no interest in calming things down. There were further similar skirmishes just before kick-off, and during the game. The opening exchanges looked quite promising for Dieppe, but Rouen took the lead with 6 minutes on the clock. Adama Sidibé laid the ball off for Kader N'Chobi, who showed almost unbelievable pace to race past a covering defender, leaving him for dead before running towards the keeper, and then striking the ball past the keeper. And within a couple of minutes, the visitors doubled their lead. Following an attacking free-kick by Dieppe, a quick counter attack saw Abdeljalil Sahloune race forward down the middle, before passing to his left to an unmarked Sidibé, and he slotted the ball past the keeper. And it was virtually game over with just 16 minutes on the clock, once again N'Chobi raced down the left wing, eventually crossing the ball low to Sidibé, who tapped the ball home from a close range, central position. Unsurprisingly, the Dieppe right back was then substituted, after having a really torrid time against the pace of the Rouen forwards. Dieppe had a great chance to equalise on 33 minutes when Cady Pandi intercepted a back pass, passed to Damien Plisson at the edge of the penalty area in a central position, but he fired the ball over the empty goal. No further real chances were created before half time, and so Rouen retained their three goal advantage at the break.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the second half dropped in intensity somewhat, and although Rouen had a few sights at goal, their final shots lacked conviction, and Dieppe kept battling without looking likely to pull a goal back. As the game entered injury time, the visiting supporters broke out in cheering and chanting, as news came through that Évreux had lost at US Avranches B, confirming FC Rouen as champions and with it promotion to National 2, the fourth tier of French football. After the final whistle, the Rouen players celebrated wildly on the pitch, in front of the Rouen fans celebrating in the stand. They were by far the better team today, quicker in every respect than the hosts, for whom this was a rather chastening experience. They do have an opportunity for quick revenge though, as the two clubs will meet here again on Wednesday in the Coupe de Normandie, but that looks a tall order, as there seems to be a real gulf in quality and pace between the two teams. Apparently there were a lot of absences from the Dieppe team today due to injuries and suspensions - they must hope that some of their first teamers return on Wednesday.
And so after spending some time in the hospitality area listening to club president Patrick Coquelet thanking the club's fans and sponsors, and expressing his displeasure at the conduct of some of the Rouen players, I walked back to the town, taking a meandering amble around the town and seafront, eventually arriving at the ferry terminal, to catch the 23.59 ferry back to Newhaven, getting home at just before 5am. This was a most enjoyable day out, and although very long one, at least I was able to get plenty of sleep during the 5 hour crossing home, and it is a journey I would like to do again, to visit other clubs in Upper Normandy region in the future.
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