Olivier MAGNE

Biog of Olivier MAGNE :

On 1 March 1997, Magne ran across the Twickenham turf waving the tricolore. It had been his first time in the starting line-up, his second cap and France had just beaten England 20-23 in an amazing comeback, having been led 20-3. Les Bleus went on to win the Grand Slam that year, the first of four Magne would play in (1997, 1998, 2002 and 2004), a record for a Frenchman shared with Fabien Pelous. He did not play in every game (16 out of 18) but his record is testimony to his longevity (89 selections between 1997 and 2007) and his consistency at the highest level.

Magne, the 24-year-old flanker with the mop of bleached hair, made his debut for France during the 1997 tournament. He brought with him the ball-handling skills and ground coverage reminiscent of Laurent Cabannes, his predecessor in the number seven shirt. He was perhaps slightly less elegant than Cabannes but proved just as effective. There was also something of the phenomenal All Black, Michael Jones, in his eye for the gap.  It was not for nothing that the All Blacks, following the legendary French victory (43-31) against New Zealand in the semi-final of the 1999 World Cup at Twickenham, thought that Magne was one of France’s best players. On that fantastic day, Magne made an interception and then kicked on for Bernat-Salles to score the fourth French try, taking the score to 43-24.

He was not a big man for his position (1.88m, 95kg) but he had been involved in sport at a high level from an early age. From 12 years of age he selected the downhill skiing option in sport studies and played rugby from 17 years old onwards. Magne was an athlete and without doubt one of the most professional players of his generation. Jean-Claude Skrela, French coach from 1995-1999, wrote in his book Le tournant du jeu* that he was “one of those players with absolute discipline in matters of fitness”. However, Magne’s approach was sometimes judged too individualist in a sport that stresses the importance of the team. It is true that his game sometimes gave the impression he left the more unthankful tasks to others, leaving himself free to exploit the possession others had battled to win. But it takes all kinds and Magne’s style of play often complemented that of the other, more defensively-minded flanker, such as Philippe Benetton or Marc Lièvremont at the start of his international career, or later Serge Betsen with whom, from 2000 onwards, he played 41 times including 30 times in the starting line-up.  Or again like Alexandre Audebert, his teammate at Clermont, the club Magne would stay with the longest (1999-2005).

He played in a French Championship final (2001) and a European Challenge Cup final (2004) with Clermont but did not win any major silverware with them, or with any other club for that matter. In club rugby Olivier Magne was always the “nearly” man, notably, along with missing out on the Brennus shield in 2001, losing in the European Cup final with Brive in 1998. His stay in England with London Irish (2005-2007) would take him to the semi-finals of the Championship and again to the final of the European Challenge Cup in the same year (2006).

Magne returned to Brive in 2007 to finish his career, taking up a coaching position after only a few weeks, and he remained there until the end of the 2007-2008 season. Today he is the trainer of the French A and French Amateur teams.

* Le tournant du jeu, Grasset publications.