During the war years, several players distinguished themselves in the jersey of Olympique de Marseille -- Emmanuel Aznar, Georges Dard or Jean Robin. Louis de Sainte de Maréville also marked the club throughout 1939-1945. An Olympien from 1942 to 1947, De Maréville played 122 matches for OM.
Born on 19 April 1918 in Berre-l'Étang in the Bouches-du-Rhône, De Maréville began his football career at La Licorne, a club in which he played for 12 years. The striker then joined Olympique de Marseille in 1942. His impact within the team was immediate.
SIXTH COUPE DE FRANCE
For his first season in Marseille, Marseille won its sixth Coupe de France by beating Bordeaux in front of 32,000 spectators at the Parc des Princes on May 22, 1943 (4-0). He distinguished himself by slamming a hat-trick during the historical victory against Avignon on 6 October, 1942 with a score of 20-2!
Louis de Sainte de Maréville scored 26 goals in two years. He also finished as OM's top scorer in the league for three seasons. A year after his arrival, he scored 12 times in the 1943-1944 season.
De Maréville then scored 18 goals, which allowed him to be the best OM striker in D1 that season ahead of Emmanuel Aznar (12). He scored a hat-trick in the league in Bordeaux on 22 April, 1945 (2-3).
21 GOALS IN ONE SEASON
He would break his record the next season by scoring 21 goals in 1945-46. Finishing as club's top scorer three times in a row (France and Littoral) was no easy feat. Only Alcazar, Zatelli, Andersson, Maya Joseph, Skoblar, Pascal, Papin, Niang and Gignac have performed such a feat in all the history at OM. De Maréville remains the 11th best scorer in the history of Olympique de Marseille in the league, having scored 66 times. In 122 games played with OM, the striker scored 75 goals in all competitions including six in the Coupe de France.
He left Marseille to join AS Cannes for three seasons (1947-1950). He finished his career near Marseille, with AS Gardanne -- where he played as a coach-player for one season in 1959-1960. He died on 1 July 1982 at the age of 64 in Marseille, the city where he had his best time on a football field. His many goals will be engraved for sure in the very long history of Olympique Marseille.
