François Trinh-Duc
Encyclopedia
François Trinh-Duc is a French rugby union
player for Montpellier Hérault RC
in France's top division of rugby union, the Top 14. Trinh-Duc's regular position is at fly-half or outside centre.
.
He started playing rugby at the age of 4 at the Pic-Saint-Loup rugby school near his native city. There, he played with his future Montpellier
team-mate Fulgence Ouedraogo
. They both entered the club's youth teams at "Cadet" level (U-13/14) and are said to be inseparable friends.
With fellow Montpelliérains Louis Picamoles
and Julien Tomas
, he is part of a quartet of home-grown talents embodying the success of the Montpellier Hérault Rugby Club's attempt at "shaking up the old order" of French rugby in the Septimanie terroir which had always been historical rival Béziers
's stronghold.
He was called up by Marc Lièvremont
to the France
squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship
, and has played in all of France's matches in the competition to date.
Trinh-Duc's drop goal helped France
beat England
19-12 at Eden Park
in quarter final in 2011 Rugby World Cup
. He came on as a substitute for the injured Morgan Parra
in the 23rd minute of the final
against New Zealand. He set in motion the move that led to Thierry Dusautoir
's try in the 47th minute and converted the try to make the score 8-7. With 15 minutes remaining and the score still at 8-7, France were awarded a penalty to put them in front for the first time, but Trinh-Duc's 48m penalty attempt was wide of the mark and the All Blacks went on to win the final.
heritage from his paternal grandfather, who was born in Vietnam
. Trinh-Duc's grandfather, Trịnh Đức Nhiên, migrated to France during the First Indochina War
and settled near Agen
in Lot-et-Garonne
. Nhien later married an Italian woman, from whom Trinh-Duc's father, Philippe was born.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player for Montpellier Hérault RC
Montpellier Hérault RC
Montpellier Hérault Rugby Club is a professional French rugby union, based in Montpellier the capital of Languedoc-Roussillon. The club competes in the top level of the French league system, in the Top 14. They originally played at Stade Sabathé but moved to the Stade Yves-du-Manoir in 2007...
in France's top division of rugby union, the Top 14. Trinh-Duc's regular position is at fly-half or outside centre.
Biography
Trinh-Duc was born in MontpellierMontpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
.
He started playing rugby at the age of 4 at the Pic-Saint-Loup rugby school near his native city. There, he played with his future Montpellier
Montpellier Hérault RC
Montpellier Hérault Rugby Club is a professional French rugby union, based in Montpellier the capital of Languedoc-Roussillon. The club competes in the top level of the French league system, in the Top 14. They originally played at Stade Sabathé but moved to the Stade Yves-du-Manoir in 2007...
team-mate Fulgence Ouedraogo
Fulgence Ouedraogo
Fulgence Ouedraogo is a French rugby union footballer. He currently plays for Montpellier Hérault RC in the Top 14 championship. His usual position is as a flanker....
. They both entered the club's youth teams at "Cadet" level (U-13/14) and are said to be inseparable friends.
With fellow Montpelliérains Louis Picamoles
Louis Picamoles
Louis Picamoles is a rugby union player who plays in France's top division of rugby union, the Top 14. Picamoles's regular position is at Number eight in the Back row....
and Julien Tomas
Julien Tomas
Julien Tomas is a French rugby union footballer. He plays as a scrum-half.Born in Montpellier, Tomas plays for local Montpellier Hérault since 2004/05, in the first category.He played for France U-21, where he was World Champion, in 2006...
, he is part of a quartet of home-grown talents embodying the success of the Montpellier Hérault Rugby Club's attempt at "shaking up the old order" of French rugby in the Septimanie terroir which had always been historical rival Béziers
AS Béziers Hérault
Association Sportive Béziers Hérault, often referred to by rugby media simply by its location of Béziers, is a French rugby union club preparing to return to the second tier of the country's professional rugby system, Pro D2. They earned promotion as 2011 Fédérale 1 champions...
's stronghold.
He was called up by Marc Lièvremont
Marc Lièvremont
Marc Lièvremont is a former rugby union footballer and was the head coach of the French national rugby union team. He played as a back-row forward for France, gaining 25 caps from 1995 to 1999, and was selected in France's 1999 Rugby World Cup squad...
to the France
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship
2008 Six Nations Championship
The 2008 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2008 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the ninth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 114th...
, and has played in all of France's matches in the competition to date.
Trinh-Duc's drop goal helped France
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
beat England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
19-12 at Eden Park
Eden Park
Eden Park is the biggest stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. It is used primarily for rugby union in winter and cricket in summer . The ground also occasionally hostts rugby league matches. To accommodate all three sports, the cricket pitch is removable...
in quarter final in 2011 Rugby World Cup
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Africa at a meeting in Dublin on 17 November 2005...
. He came on as a substitute for the injured Morgan Parra
Morgan Parra
Morgan Parra is a rugby union player who plays as a Scrum half and occasionally Fly-half. He plays for Clermont Auvergne in the Top 14 after signing for them from Bourgoin....
in the 23rd minute of the final
2011 Rugby World Cup Final
The 2011 Rugby World Cup Final was a rugby union match between France and New Zealand, the final match of the 2011 Rugby World Cup. It was played on Sunday, 23 October 2011 at Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand, and was won 8–7 by New Zealand, who thus won the World Cup.The New Zealand All Blacks...
against New Zealand. He set in motion the move that led to Thierry Dusautoir
Thierry Dusautoir
Thierry Dusautoir is a French rugby union player who currently plays for France at international level and Toulouse in the French Top 14 club competition. Dusautoir is a strong ball carrier with good speed and strength to get out of tackles.Dusautoir was born in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire...
's try in the 47th minute and converted the try to make the score 8-7. With 15 minutes remaining and the score still at 8-7, France were awarded a penalty to put them in front for the first time, but Trinh-Duc's 48m penalty attempt was wide of the mark and the All Blacks went on to win the final.
Personal life
Trinh-Duc was noted as one of the first ever rugby players of Vietnamese origin to play for the French national side. During a press interview, Trinh-Duc revealed that he inherited VietnameseVietnamese people in France
The Vietnamese people in France consists of people of Vietnamese ancestry who were born in or immigrated to France. The population is 250,000, as of 2006.-History:...
heritage from his paternal grandfather, who was born in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Trinh-Duc's grandfather, Trịnh Đức Nhiên, migrated to France during the First Indochina War
First Indochina War
The First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union's French Far East...
and settled near Agen
Agen
Agen is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in Aquitaine in south-western France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. It is the capital of the department.-Economy:The town has a higher level of unemployment than the national average...
in Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne is a department in the southwest of France named after the Lot and Garonne rivers.-History:Lot-et-Garonne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
. Nhien later married an Italian woman, from whom Trinh-Duc's father, Philippe was born.