Stuck in the Midol: More headline stories and tales that slipped under the radar from French Rugby bible Midi Olympique and elsewhere

Hacks crack Dax

Dax supporters came under attack when hackers, mistaking their website Allezdax.com for Germany's DAX stock exchange, forced it to shut down for two weeks.

"Our defences were certainly inadequate," said Stéphane, an Allexdax.com administrator. "The hackers insulted us copiously in German. I only have one thing to say to them: leave us alone!"

The website usually receives 700 daily hits but was visited 80,000 times as a result of the attack, making it twice as popular as the official Dax website.

They have since got the website back online. "Having been attacked full-on by a young, spotty Teuton, the site is back with more security," the site's homepage said.

Meanwhile, there's no truth in the rumour that hackers attacking France's own CAC 40 mistakenly brought down Biarritz's squad pages instead.

Saint-André's coach search sparks Bru-haha

The integration of Argentina into the Southern Hemisphere season could see many of the 30 or so Pumas currently plying their trade in the Top 14 heading south for good. But one Argentinian who looks likely to be staying in French rugby is Gonzalo Quesada, courtesy of contract disputes between Biarritz and the French Rugby Federation over Patrice Lagisquet.

New national boss Philippe Saint-André has finally managed to snare Toulouse coach Yannick Bru as his forwards chief after prolonged contract negotiations which could yet see the former Bleus hooker staying with the French champions until the end of the season. Toulouse, for their part, are said to be in talks with Carcassonne coach Christian Labit to replace Bru.

Meanwhile the appointment of Lagisquet as backs coach rests in the balance after the 46-cap winger appears to have opted to remain Director of Rugby at struggling Biarritz.

"I have other priorities," the 'Bayonne Express' told TV show Stade 2. "My only concern is to get the season started properly at Biarritz."

If PSA can't convince Lagisquet to join the national setup Quesada, who spent eight years in France with Narbonne, Beziers, Stade Francais, Pau and Toulon, is expected to be offered the backs coach position. The 39-cap Argentinian outside-half is familiar with the France squad, having been kicking coach to les Bleus under Marc Lievremont.

400km for a home game? Not Toulon

When Bourgoin were languishing at the foot of the Top 14 in May with five points from a miserable season, no-one would have foreseen European rugby returning to Stade Pierre-Rajon before the end of the year.

But that's exactly what happened, but it's not les grenats et bleus of Pro D2 taking to the field, but Toulon. The fierce storms that forced the postponement of Toulon's Top 14 clash with Agen on Saturday also put paid to RCT's Amlin Cup match against Petrarca.

Knowing that cancelling the game would see his club forfeit two points, Toulon owner Mourad Boudjellal investigated playing at several stadiums across the Provence-Herault-Aude belt. But after Cannes, Aix-en-Provence, Istres, Nimes, Montpellier and Narbonne all sent the Vars club packing, it came down to a choice between Lyon's Stade Matmut and Bourgoin's Pierre-Rajon, both some 400km north of the Mediterranean port.

The move didn't harm Toulon though, as their second-string scored seven tries en route to a 53-22 victory.

In 100 metres you will reach your destination

If they want to find the quickest route home, Boudjellal could do worse than ask Brive for a loan of their GPS systems. Since the start of the season Brive's players have worn tiny transmitters inside their shirts so that club analysts could track player movement and performance. But last Friday, their opponents Racing-Metro vetoed the devices on the grounds that they could cause injury. It must have put les Brivistes off too, as for only the second time this season they failed to find their way over the Amedée Domenech tryline.

Montpellier mumped off

The fall-out from the mumps outbreak that saw three games cancelled continued as Montpellier, whose match at Lyon was postponed last weekend, are facing up to the prospect of playing three matches in eight days. Their match at Stade Matmut has been rescheduled for November 30, four days after a tricky Top 14 tie with Clermont and four days before they travel to Biarritz on December 4.

While the matches comply with the regulations that says players should have three days' rest between games, Montpellier coach Fabien Galthié wants to know why a fairer solution wasn't found.

"We don't understand. They tell us they want to protect players then we have to play three matches in eight days. Who are they protecting?

"We asked to play the games over 10 days, they said 'No'. We asked to play it over the European quarter-finals weekend, they said 'No'.

"After playing eight weeks without 60 percent of our squad, they give us three matches in eight days!"

Pas 'Bonne

World Cup winner Bob Dwyer arrives in Narbonne this week, not to take up the coaching reins at the Pro D2 team, but to close his purchase of the club, cast an eye over his investments and perhaps find out what the hell the former French champions are doing three places from the bottom of the second division.

Dwyer's management company FGM is set to take over the club pending shareholder agreement due before the end of the month. The €450,000 deal will see FGM own 75 percent of the club, with another €150,000 payable at a later date. The group will also inject €200,000 into the club specifically to strengthen the squad.

And les oranges et noirs definitely need strengthening. Despite the arrival of Australian coaches Matt Williams and Justin Harrison, the club has won only three of its nine matches this season, the lowest points after a bright start being defeat at bitter rivals Beziers (one of the two teams below them in the table) and an abject 54-10 defeat at La Rochelle.

Nevertheless Dwyer, far from feretting through his suit pockets for the receipt, is optimistic about the club's prospects under FGM. "We have invested a lot of time and resources to get here and we are delighted to have succeeded. The FGM team has fallen in love with Narbonne and of course with Racing with its history, its heritage and its potential. No effort will be spared in order that the club and its players belong where they deserve and we will accomplish this by putting the people of Narbonne at the heart of the club," he said.

After meeting club officials, Dwyer will watch his side take on second-placed Grenoble on Satuday evening. What was the cooling-off period on that contract again, Bob?