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Staying put: James Hook is
happy to remain at the Ospreys
Photo: Michael Paler |
The
Ligue National de Rugby (LNR) has handed out a series of
fines and suspensions following its latest disciplinary
hearing, including a 60-day ban for Montauban coach
Marc Raynaud.
The
former Montauban captain, in his first season as head coach,
was suspended after a confrontation with the referee in the
ill-tempered home defeat against Bourgoin on September 26th.
Half of the ban is suspended.
Both
team captains were also banned, with Bourgoin's Julien
Frier and Montauban's Matthew Clarkin handed
20-day suspensions for failing in their duties after
clashing in the tunnel at half-time.
Bayonne and SCA Albi were also up before the beak
following another ill-tempered match which featured two mass
brawls and further unseemly fighting at half-time.
Basement
club Albi won the match in question 19-14, but it seems that
their solitary league victory of the season came at a price,
with the home side fined
€17,500
and Bayonne
€12,500
as the LNR seeks to crack down on what it perceives as
behaviour that is damaging rugby's reputation.
Albi's
overall fine was made up of three separate penalties, with
the club sanctioned
€5,000
for the on-field fight, €7,5000 for violating the
"best interests of rugby" and €5,000 more for their
"security breach".
In addition Laurent
Baluc-Rittener - the Albi player accused of punching a
Bayonne coach at half-time despite not even playing in the
match - was slapped with a 40-day suspension for
"undermining the best interests of rugby".
Fellow Albi players
Kevin Boulogne and Christophe Lafoy were also
banned, with each being handed a 10-day suspension. Albi
coach Eric Béchu and Bayonne counterpart Richard Dourthe
were further warned for not controlling their players.
Albi
president Bernard Archilla said after the hearing: "In the
case of the altercation which took place in the corridors
leading to the changing rooms during the game against
Bayonne we wanted to demonstrate that there had been no
deliberate attack, but that it occurred after a series of
stupid provocations."
On a busy day for the disciplinary panel
Patrick Ariettaz, head coach of ProD2's RC Narbonne,
was also banned for 60 days for a similar offence to
Raynaud's.
Recently
resigned Colomiers coach Roland Pujo was
suspended for 10 days, along with Ludovic Lousteau,
trainer of Union Bordeaux-Bègles.
On a
separate matter the LNR also confirmed that all Top 14
matches in round 12 will be held at 19.30 on Thursday
November 5th, except the Perpignan-Toulon game which will
start at 21.00 due to television coverage.
Elsewhere, Ospreys Welsh international James Hook has
played down
reports linking him with a possible
move to France.
The
24-year-old recently spoke out about his unhappiness at
losing the fly-half berth to Dan Biggar, but now appears
happy to fight for his place, at least until a firm offer
comes his way anyway.
"I can't
stress enough that I'm happy here. I've grown up here and
been part of this region since I was a youngster and it's a
great place to be. It's nice to know that clubs are
interested, it means I must be doing something right, but
I'm an Osprey and I'm happy where I am," he said.
"I'm not
going to go to the directors and say I want to go anywhere.
I'm under contract here for another two years, so even if I
were interested there'd be nothing I could do about it. When
the right time comes to sit down and talk with them about a
new contract I will. I'll just deal with that when it
comes," added Hook.
Top 14
outfit Bayonne are reputed to be heading a clutch of French
clubs chasing Hook, but it remains to be seen how much they
are willing to pay to both tempt the player, and also to
compensate the Ospreys.
Biarritz's Jean-Baptiste Gobelet is set for a
lengthy spell on the sidelines after undergoing surgery for
a shoulder problem first picked up against Montpellier at
the beginning of September.
The
27-year-old has now been ruled out for four to six months,
with late March his initial target for a playing comeback.
Finally,
Stade Toulousain's injured fly-half David Skrela
has resumed training and remains on track for a playing
return in January.
