Fabrice Meziani
View all news Published | 14/10/2009
We join together to mourn the loss of a charismatic man
It is with regret that we have to announce the loss of Fabrice Meziani, our Under 11s Manager, who sadly passed away suddenly on Saturday 10th October 2009.
Fabrice had been a coach and ambassador for the Club for many years. He was a fun loving individual who loved nothing more than to see children enjoying sport, not just football either. He had time for everyone and we have all benefited from knowing such a charismatic man.
He will be sadly missed by us all. Fabrice has touched so many lives and he will never be forgotten. Our thoughts and deepest sympathy are with his wife Claire, his three children and the rest of the family.
The funeral will be held on Friday 16th October 2009 at 4.15pm at Amersham Crematorium. The ceremony will be a celebration of Fabrice's life and children are welcome at the discretion of their parents.
Paul Butler
Below are the tributes we've received in memory of Fabrice...
I am really sad about this news, I always got on with Fabrice, he will be greatly missed. Judith Sherrington Fixture Secretary (email)
This is a big shock coming so soon after the sad news about Stuart. Please pass on to the family the condolences of all involved with the Dynamos U9s. Fabrice was always very passionate about his football and he will be greatly missed. Mark Worrell Under 9s (email)
I didn't know Fabrice that well, just through meeting him a few times through Friday night football, but I am so shocked at this news. Condolences to Fabrice's family. Steve Cooper (Former Coach) (telephone)
Dear Judith, I've just heard the very sad news regarding Fabrice. I met Fabrice only on a couple of occasions but admired his passion and dedication to the game. Everyone from AFC Lightning send their condolences to his family and to the club. Regards, Graeme Carter AFC Lightning Secretary & U11 Manager (via email to Judith Sherrington)
Dear Tony, I should be grateful if you could pass on our deepest condolences to the Meziani family from me and Rishi. We are shocked and saddened to hear of his death but feel honoured to have had a manager who was keen for football to be played in the right way and conducted himself with fairness and integrity in all matters concerned with Downley Dynamos. With Kind regards, S Sharma (via email to Tony Gay)
Hi Tony, I just wanted to send my condolences on the shocking news of Fabrice. I met Fabrice only a few times, but spoke to him many times over the phone mainly in trying to sort out a team for the less talented of the Downley players (trying to amalgamate a team for them to play in). It was obvious to me he was the kind of man who'd go out of his way to help anyone and in particular any child under his care. A wonderful man and a terrible loss to boy's football. Can you please pass on my thoughts to his family. Best Regards, David Horbury Marlow Youth FC Under 11 Manager & age group AGR (via email to Tony Gay)
We are deeply shocked and saddened on hearing the news about Fabrice. The Downley Dynamos just won't be the same without our charming, French, rugby loving football coach! He will be greatly missed by us all. Our thoughts and deepest sympathy to Claire, the children and family. Moyra & Fran Lazenby Secretary & Vice-Chairman
A tribute to Fab... No truer words have ever been said in that "only the good die young". Fabrice certainly fell into this category. It was a pleasure to have known and been a friend of this colourful character and his passing will certainly leave an empty gap. Friday nights at Cressex, where many of the Downley Coaches and other friends would meet for 6-a-side footy, will never be the same. Fabrice loved this time and enjoyed it to the full. He was always a regular, come rain or shine. I will miss his elation on scoring a goal and also the exaggerated dispair when missing a sitter, followed by a simple grin as he laughed at himself. I will miss his handshake and arm around the shoulder at the end. But most of all I will miss the passion and enthusiasm he showed, not only on Fridays but in the way he conducted himself generally. If you could have bottled and sold his enthusiasm you would be a very rich man.
It was this passion and enthusiasm he took into his coaching, a man who had no previous experience of football coaching but could immediately capture the concentration of a bunch of 7 year old kids, no mean feat! He never hid the fact his coaching skills were raw and was often asking for advice on certain aspects but it was again his enthusiasm that took him to want to learn more about the game. He put himself out to take his Level 1 and 2 Coaching Badges, our only Downley Coach with both these qualifications.
Another side of Fab that I got to enjoy was his great humour; if you were going out to a function you always hoped Fab would be there. You knew it would be a good night if he was. He would have you in stitches with some of the stories he used to tell. I remember a Coaches Christmas party and Fab was reeling off one of his stories and Moyra, our Club Secretary turned round to him and said "Oh keep talking Fab, I don't care what you say, just keep talking!" The ladies loved that French charm and the guys just stood back and laughed!
So, before we prepare to celebrate the life of this charismatic character, I would just like to pass on my deepest sympathy to Claire, Grace, Luc, Jack and the rest of the family ~ Fabrice was a true credit to you all.
I would also like to wish the whole of the Under 11s squad a successful and enjoyable season and, to all the Under 11s Coaches, my thoughts are also with you. I know you will carry on Fab's great work, for you are all great Coaches in your own right.
Au revoir Fab, you will never be far from my thoughts, Trev. Trevor Bunting Under 15s Manager
I first met Fabrice in the Spring of 2006. Liam, my son and I had been looking for a club to join, and we had a list of teams we were going to take a look at over the coming weeks. First on that list were Downley Dynamos. I will always remember the way Fabrice came bounding up to us full of beans (I thought he was going to knock me over), and welcoming us. It was like he was meeting an old friend, not a stranger. As I sat through the training session that morning I could see that this man was one of a kind, bursting with passion for the game, and even more enthused about teaching the children football. Needless to say, our list went in the bin as soon as we got home.
The following season the team were looking for someone to help out on the administration side. I didn’t have to be asked twice! It wasn’t only the children that Fabrice had the ability to motivate; parents were just as susceptible to his infectious, enthusiastic charm. However, this of course meant that we now had to get used to this unique Frenchman being part of our lives at weekends.
As Trevor has already said, and I think a lot of people will say exactly the same. When you picture Fabrice in your head, it is always with him animatedly showing his excitement or feigning his frustration. And it was always the feigning frustration that made me smile the most. Fabrice was gentle and caring, and didn’t ‘do angry’ with the boys very well at all. I can’t remember how many times during training he would pretend to be annoyed over something that went wrong. He knew full well he couldn’t pull off ‘angry’ with them. They knew full well he couldn’t either. But for some bazaar reason, often with smirks across their faces, they would put their heads down and play along with him and his fake outbursts.
Another memorable thought that comes to mind was when at training, the boys would ask where they should put their litter, or basically anything they didn’t want to take home. The other coaches would always quietly tell them to put it into Fabrice’s kit bag. At the end of the session he would always calmly say to us that he couldn’t understand where it was coming from and asked why it was always in his bag. Of course we took his lead, and feigned ignorance.
And do you parents remember before every match we played last season, one of us had to try and stop Fabrice from running the boys ragged before the game had even started. He was so dedicated and professional in his pre-match warm up that I think he would have been happy for it to have been two hours instead of the allotted 30 minutes.
I could probably write a whole book, recounting the amusing, witty and caring moments we shared with Fabrice. He was an extraordinary man, and I will miss him. Tony Gay Under 11s
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