Romeo Gontineac

Romeo Ștefan Gontineac (born 18 December 1973 in Botoşani) is a Romanian rugby union coach and former professional player who played as a centre. He currently coaches the French club Aurillac.

Biography Gontineac was introduced to rugby by his father at the age of six. He began his senior career with Universitatea Cluj in Romania (1993–96) and then played for South Western Districts in South Africa. He subsequently moved to France, where he played for FC Grenoble (1996–97), Section Paloise (1997–98), and Aurillac (1998–2010), concluding his playing career there.

He earned 76 caps for Romania, scoring 13 tries for a total of 68 points. He played in every match for Romania in four Rugby World Cups: 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He also captained his country on several occasions.

In May 2010, Gontineac was appointed head coach of the Romanian national team, replacing France's Serge Lairle. He brought in former All Black Steve McDowall as his assistant coach during the qualifiers for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Romania qualified but had a disappointing tournament.

In January 2020, he was named head coach of Pro D2 side Aurillac.

Personal life His older brother, Marcel, was also a rugby union player and is now a coach who has worked with clubs in Romania and Italy. Gontineac is married to Lucinda, a South African woman he met while signing autographs at the 1995 Rugby World Cup. They married the following year and have two children: a son, Taylor, who is also a professional rugby player, and a daughter, Olivia-Rose (born 2003).