Stade Francais' Mark Gasnier looks increasingly likely to return to Australia at the end of the season, with new Super 15 franchise Melbourne Rebels leading the chase for the former rugby league international.

Rebels coach Rod Macqueen has admitted that he's already met Gasnier (in Sydney last week), while ARU high performance manager David Nucifora also said the player's agent has been in touch about a possible move.

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"Mark's obviously looking to move on with his life and he seems to have a good head on his shoulders," Macqueen told The Sunday Telegraph. "One of the things about Mark is he's now had a couple of years in rugby. He's been playing on the wing overseas, but he's probably better suited to outside centre."

Nucifora said he had met Gasnier in France shortly after his move to Stade Francais, adding: "Since then his agent has contacted us and we have had discussions. Mark is showing some interest in wanting to come back to Australia and wanting to have a crack at rugby.

"We're reasonably interested in chatting to him about what his motivations are and where his expectations sit in coming back to Australia. He's got a good pedigree as a footballer and he's a good athlete," added Nucifora.

But while Gasnier now looks set to return home to Australia at the end of his two-year contract this summer, fellow Aussie George Smith could be heading in the opposite direction after confirming his retirement from international rugby.

Smith is believed to be considering a number of offers to play club rugby in Europe, with France an obvious option for the veteran international.

And fellow Wallaby Wycliff Palu is also weighing up his options, with a lucrative move to France or Japan among his future possibilities. Back-rower Palu is currently weighing up an offer from the Australian Rugby Union, and is also on the hit list for the Melbourne Rebels.

Toulon have confirmed the signing of Bourgoin's Jean-Philippe Genevois for next season, with the hooker following in the footsteps of club colleague Karena Wihongi - who signed for Toulon last week. Genevois is the third Bourgoin player to leave the financially stricken club, with Arnauld Tchougong having joined Perpignan earlier in the season, and it seems certain that more will depart as the transfer window wears on.

Meanwhile, Toulon's assistant coach Tana Umaga is believed to be considering a move back to New Zealand, with The Steelers rumoured to be leading the chase for the 74-Test veteran. According to reports in New Zealand Counties are keen to bring Umaga on board in a player/coach position.

Counties coach Milton Haig confirmed Umaga had been approached, with the former All Black becoming a free agent in the summer at the end of his current deal. "We do know what he is looking for," said Haig. "To fit into an assistant coach's role as well as playing. We are interested in him firstly as a player, absolutely," he added.

Two Clermont Auvergne players have agreed contract extensions this week, with Thibault Privat and Mario Ledesma both committing to the club. Privat, 30, has signed until 2012, while Ledesma, 36, has signed until 2011.

Twenty-year-old Fijian Kini Murimurivalu has also signed his first professional contract with the club - for three years - after impressing with the 'espoirs'.

Finally, banned scrum-half Julien Dupuy has been talking about life on the sidelines after seven weeks of his 23-week suspension for eye-gouging Ulster's Stephen Ferris. The French international, who was in Edinburgh for France's opening Six Nations match, remains contrite about his actions - if still bemused by the length of his ban.

"I said it was a silly gesture and that under no circumstances  did I want to hurt the eyes of my opponent," Dupuy told Midi Olympique. "All the newspapers said it was eye-gouging, but it is not the case. Even the judges agreed that it was only a hand in the face. I've seen far worse acts than mine and the players have only been banned for eight weeks."

Dupuy said he was trying to learn from his mistakes. "I must take a step back and I'll try to come back stronger when I can play rugby again," he added. "Everybody supported me; the club, the staff, coaches, players - even players from other clubs that we meet, and my former teammates at Biarritz and Leicester. Everyone was disappointed for me but I have taken any negative thoughts," said the Stade Francais scrum-half.