Fernand Desrousseaux

Early life and education Fernand Desrousseaux was born in Tourcoing on 23 October 1879. (Some sources wrongly claim that he was born in Constantine, Algeria, on 3 January 1885, due to a confusion with a certain François Desrousseaux.)

Footballing career Refereeing career In 1900, Desrousseaux took the exam to become an official referee, which he passed. He refereed several matches, most notably the final of the 1905 Challenge International du Nord, which was won by the Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise. On 9 May 1907, Desrousseaux refereed that year's Paris-Nord meeting, which served as an annual test matches for the French national team.

Playing career In the first and second leg matches of the 1900 Northern Championship final, Desrousseaux appeared as full-back, but since his brother Paul also played for the club at the time, it is not possible to confirm if that was Fernand. Having initially played in the positions of fullback and forward, it was in 1904 that Desrousseaux took up the position of goalkeeper.

In the late 1900s, Desrousseaux was France's fourth or fifth choice behind the likes of Zacharie Baton, Maurice Tillette, André Renaux, and Henri Beau, his northern rival Tilliette would do worse with the A team, letting 17 goals go through in the semifinals.

Manegerial career Desrousseaux (standing, dressed with coat, second from left) with the US Tourquennoise team before the final of the 1910 USFSA French championship. Desrousseaux retired from playing in early 1910, aged 30, being replaced in the UST's goal by Albert Parsys. Some sources state that he never dared to appear on the field where US Tourcoing was playing a match, preferring to wait in "a nearby café impatiently waiting for the first spectators to come out so he could run for news". An engineer, he remained an important leader of the UST, without ever seeking the presidency, preferring a managerial position. In 1922, he was appointed manager of the Northern team for a Paris-Nord match.

Later life and death During the First World War, Desrousseaux, then secretary of the UST, was taken to Germany as a civilian prisoner, but returned to his homeland in 1915, and was then mobilized in a factory for war supplies.

Desrousseaux died in Tourcoing on 26 August 1956, at the age of 76.

Honours As a player US Tourquennoise USFSA Football Northern Championship Champions (2): 1900 and 1909

As a manager US Tourquennoise USFSA Football Championship: Champions (1): 1910