Lenni Nouchi
| Date of birth | 24 November 2003 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 3+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 107 kg (16 st 12 lb; 236 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lenni Nouchi (born 24 November 2003) is a French professional rugby union player, who plays as a loose forward or lock for Top 14 side Montpellier. He captained the France national under-20 team that won the World Rugby U20 Championship in 2023.
Early life
Lenni Nouchi was born on 24 November 2003[1] and is the son of French former professional rugby union player Samuel Nouchi, who won the French Championship (then Top 16) for Biarritz in 2002.[2] Growing up in Hérault, he started playing rugby with the Béziers youth system in 2009 and then joined the Servian-Boujan amateur club in 2011. Three years later, he returned to Béziers and then joined the Montpellier academy in 2021.[1]
Club career
Nouchi made his professional debut with his club in an away match at Castres on 8 October 2022, coming off the bench and playing around 15 minutes.[3] On 2 April 2023, he made his Champions Cup debut against Exeter Chiefs in the competition knockout stage and scored a try in the 76th minute.[4]
International career
Having made his debut for France U20 on 3 February 2023 in the Six Nations Under 20s Championship match against Italy,[4] he was named in the France U20 squad for the World Rugby Under 20 Championship a few months after.[5] Captaining the team and being the starting blindside flanker, he led France to victory and scored a try against Ireland in the final.[4][6]
In January 2024, he was first called to the France senior team for the Six Nations Championship.[7]
Honours
- France U20
- World Rugby Under 20 Championship
Champion (1): 2023
- Six Nations Under 20s Championship
Runner-up (1): 2023
References
- ^ a b "Lenni NOUCHI". MHR (in French). Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ Barraud, Justine (12 April 2023). "Rugby : Lenni Nouchi, international U20 du MHR, espoir du Top 14". ViàOccitanie (in French). Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ Seidenbinder, Paul (8 October 2022). "Castres-MHR : "On a frôlé la correctionnelle", les réactions d'après-match". Midi Libre (in French). Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ a b c "Lenni NOUCHI: profile and stats". All.Rugby. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ Muzeau, Sylvain (1 June 2023). "Le groupe de France moins 20 ans pour le Championnat du monde". FFR (in French). Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "France take on Ireland for U20 Championship glory". World Rugby. 13 July 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "Liste des 6 joueurs convoqués pour l'Irlande et forfait de Melvyn Jaminet". FFR (in French). 28 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.