René CÉDOLIN

Born in the Yvelines area, near Paris, René Cédolin started his footballing journey as a youth with Douvres-la-Délivrande in Normandy. A talented defender, he went on to join the First Team at Caen, who were playing in the French Fourth Division at the time. In 1959, he signed his first professional contract with Stade Rennais, and his Red and Blacks debut on 16th September of that season, playing at left-back against Reims. In his first few seasons with Rennes, he would regularly find himself playing at full-back in a 3-2-5 formation. In May 1960, he got the call from his country, but a couple of health issues meant that he had to spread out his National Military Service over two periods. That would mean that he would see little action on the pitch between 1959 and 1963, and he finished his public service in July 1962. He finally got to commit fully to football, and demonstrate his talent in the 1963/1964 season. He won a first title with Rennes, winning the 1965 French Cup Final. Rennes initially drew with Sedan (2-2) in the Cup Final, but prevailed in the Replay, winning 3-1, but Cédolin was unable to take part, not feeling 100% fit on the day. In the seasons that followed, he would be moved to a central defensive rôle, mainly down to a change in system to a 4-2-4 formation. In 1971, he would win his second French Cup Winners' medal, playing a full part in the whole cup-run. Cédolin sometimes took charge of the physical training sessions for his team-mates, helping out Jean Prouff in his function as Manager. He decided to call time on his playing career in 1972, aged 32, as a result of a decision taken by the club's management. He then turned his attention for football management, firstly (and naturally) with Rennes, where he led the team for two-and-a-half years, then moving on to coach other French clubs, including: Troyes, Guingamp, Angers, Niort, Alès and Le Havre.