Vinaya Habosi, who was recalled after a domestic violence investigation, scored as Racing 92 defeated Vannes in the Top 14 on Saturday. This came less than three weeks after his arrest following a dispute with his wife. The 24-year-old Fijian winger has been sanctioned by the Parisian club and is required to attend a domestic violence course.
Habosi’s first-half goal helped Racing come from behind to secure a 27-24 victory, marking their second win in five games this season and easing the pressure on coach Stuart Lancaster, the former England and Leinster boss. Vannes, playing in their first season at this level, remains at the bottom of the standings after suffering their fourth defeat.
In Perpignan, Hugo Auradou made his first start for Pau a month after returning home from Argentina, where he faced accusations of rape following a Test match. The 21-year-old lock was arrested alongside La Rochelle flanker Oscar Jegou after they both made their debut for France against the Pumas in Mendoza. A woman alleged that the players assaulted her in a hotel room after an evening out, but the men deny the allegations, asserting that the encounter was consensual. On Friday, Argentine prosecutors recommended dropping the rape charges against both players.
Jegou has resumed training with La Rochelle but was not included in their match against Lyon on Saturday. Later in the day, Antoine Dupont’s former team Castres was set to host Toulouse, the current club of the star scrum-half, who is absent as he spends the final week of his post-Olympic gold medal holiday in the United States, where he met Argentine football legend Lionel Messi in Miami.