
I have written about how the game of Rugby League is played
in France before. You can read that article here. But I should give you some
background on how the Grizzlies came to be in the Grand Final...
The team plays in two competitions during the season: the French Elite 1 competition, and the French Lord Derby Cup. The Elite 1 competition is the 'regular' competition that is played regularly over the season of October to May, with the Derby Cup being a knock-out competition.
In the Elite 1, the games are scheduled each week, with a
week off every few weeks to allow for any catch up games that may have been postponed
due to weather. There are nine teams that played in this competition in the
2012-2013 season, with the top six progressing to the finals after 19 rounds.
The Lord Derby Cup is played over four weekends spread out
from January to May, with 15 teams playing in the four-round knock-out competition
(a 16th team was forced to withdraw from the competition early). These teams
are made up of most of the teams from the Elite 1, as well as a few teams from
the Elite 2 competition that have played for the right to compete in the Derby
Cup.
After six months of games, the Limoux Grizzlies finished the
Elite 1 competition in second-last place, missing out on the finals. However
the team managed to defeat their three opponents to reach the final of the
Derby Cup. The impressive thing about this result, is that each team that the
Grizzlies played during the Derby Cup were in second place on the Elite 1
ladder at the time the Grizzlies played them.
As they were not in the finals of the regular competition,
the last game that the team played was on the 31st of March. Since then, we
have had weekends mostly free, with training commitments taking up most of the
week.
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The Limoux Supporters Club with their stall |
You can imagine the excitement building, then, in the small
town of Limoux, for their team to be playing in the Grand Final. The Club's
group of supporters have set up a store in the Town's Square to sell
merchandise and tickets to the game, while promoting a big day starting with a
BBQ at the Club House and buses arranged to take fans to the game.
Buses have been arranged to take fans to the game, which is
being played on neutral ground in Carcassonne, with a strong Limoux contingent
expected to cheer their team on. I have booked my seat on the bus, and will be
amongst the crowd as Marty plays in his final game in red and black for the
Grizzlies.
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