While great changes are underway in the elite of European football, the eternal Coupe de France continues to distill its surprises decade after decade.
This Tuesday evening, GFA Rumilly Vallières, Haut-Savoyard club of National 2 (4th division) eliminated Toulouse, evolving two levels above, current 2nd in the Ligue 2 championship.
A free kick from the left sent by captain Peuget to the far post and Mathieu Guillaud opened the scoring with a header, getting the better of Pettersen, the Toulouse goalkeeper who was too shy in his exit (1-0, 19th). Less dashing than the local team in the first period, the formation of Patrice Garande however presents some mitigating circumstances, despite his theoretical superiority. Decimated by the Covid-19 in the past fortnight, the Violets recorded a 12th case just hours before kickoff. Feeling symptoms, 21-year-old midfielder Nathan Ngoumou was quickly tested positive and repatriated to Haute-Garonne.
After the break, the TFC does not manage to put Rumilly on the retreat and is hardly dangerous except on a shot from the left of Koulouris a little too crossed (55th).
On the contrary, the players of Fatsah Amghar carry the danger on the goal of Pettersen and Moke, ideally served by Liongo, misses the KO from close to the goal (68th).
But what does it matter since it comes a quarter of an hour later, following a new free kick from Peuget, extended by Guillaud and pushed by Rouault in his own goal (2-0, 83rd).
In a closed circle
The Albanian Football Group Rumilly Vallières, which had, for the occasion, deserted its Grangettes stadium for the Annecy Sports Park, is a very young club born in 2018 from the merger of Rumilly, 15,000 inhabitants, with three smaller municipalities: Vallières, 1,800 inhabitants, Marcellaz, 1,000, and Marigny, 900.
Raised in N2 last season, Rumilly is already talking about him at the highest level.
The club has however only five federal contracts, that is to say players living only from football, and 22 genuine amateurs, having a professional activity.
Paradoxically, Rumilly has a winner of the competition in the person of Dorian Lévêque, 31 years old.
The central defender has indeed experienced in another life the happiness of lifting the Cup at the Stade de France, during the 2014 edition, thanks to Guingamp's victory over Rennes (2-1).
Even if they are still a little far from Paris, the Haut-Savoyards join the rather closed club of N2 teams to reach the semi-finals for the last twenty years, along with Calais (2000), Montceau-les-Mines (2007) and Quevilly (2010).
