Valkyries Normandie Rugby Clubs
| Founded | 2021 | |
|---|---|---|
| Ground | Stade Jean-Mermoz | |
| President | Delphine Bunel | |
| Coach | Alexis Vairy | |
| Captain | Clémence Deu | |
| League | Élite 2 | |
| 2024–25 | 6th | |
| ||
| Official website | ||
| www | ||
Valkyries Normandie Rugby Clubs are a French women's rugby union club, based in Rouen. They compete in the Élite 2 competition, which is the second division of women's rugby in France. The club was founded in 2021, and was formed from the merger of the first teams of Ovalie Caennaise and AS Rouen UC. Their reserve team competes in Fédérale 2, the fourth and last division.
History
In 2021, Ovalie Caennaise and AS Rouen UC merged their women's first teams to form a single Normandy team. The team was named Valkyries Normandie Rugby Clubs and was registered in Elite 2 for the 2021–2022 season.[1]
In its first season, the squad consisted of approximately two-thirds of players from Rouen and one-third from Caen.[2] Each club retained its independence and its youth teams. They won the Elite 2 championship title in Grenoble against Stade Rochelais. As the first division was reduced from 14 to 12 teams, they had to play a promotion match to reach the first division. They lost 33–0 to Lons Section Paloise.[3]
The club signed an agreement with the city of Lisieux and the Normandy regional rugby league to be able to train together once a week in Lisieux.[4]
In 2023, the Valkyries finished third in the standings and lost their semi-final against Stade Français, 25–43.
Current squad
2025–26 Élite 2 season squad:[5]
| Valkyries Normandie RC squad | ||
|---|---|---|
Front row
Locks |
Loose forwards
Scrum-halves Fly-halves |
Centres
Wingers Fullbacks |
| (c) Denotes team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped, SP denotes a shadow player and ST indicated short-term cover.
| ||
Honours
- Élite 2:
- Winner (1): 2022
Finals results
| Competition | Date | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Élite 2 | 4 June 2022 | Valkyrie Normandie RC | 8–7 | Stade Rochelais | Stade Lesdiguières, Grenoble |
References
- ^ "Rugby féminin. Élite 2 : l'Ovalie caennaise et Rouen sous la même bannière". Ouest-France.fr (in French). 2021-06-09. Archived from the original on 2024-12-15. Retrieved 2026-02-15.
- ^ Chatel, Aline (2021-12-02). "Rugby. Les Valkyries, le nouveau club féminin qui fait gagner la Normandie". actu.fr (in French). Retrieved 2026-02-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Féminines Barrage Elite 1/Elite 2 : Lons domine les Valkyries et accroche son maintien". rugbyamateur.fr (in French). 2022-06-13. Retrieved 2026-02-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Rugby (Elite 2 Féminine). Les Valkyries : un mariage de raison pour sauver le rugby féminin". tendanceouest.com (in French). 2021-10-10. Retrieved 2026-02-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "L'équipe - Valkyries Normandie RC L'équipe". Valkyries Normandie RC (in French). Retrieved 2026-02-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)