London Scottish and Bath, at loggerheads all week, have finally agreed that the Argentine hooker Federico Mendez did not inflict the injury which left the flanker Simon Fenn requiring 25 stitches to repair his lower left ear.

Scottish yesterday withdrew Mendez's name from the citing document sent to the Rugby Football Union less than 72 hours after clearing prop Victor Ubogu, leaving the prop Kevin Yates as the solitary Bath player accused of the dirty deed. Yates, suspended on full pay by Bath, appears before a club disciplinary hearing on Tuesday to protest his innocence.

While Mendez and Ubogu, both of whom had already been cleared of the offence by Bath, contemplate possible legal action against Scottish, Fenn is still suffering the aftereffects of last Saturday's incident at the Recreation Ground. His club say he has been "further upset and depressed" by reported comments from Bath's honorary surgeon Philip Bliss suggesting there was no evidence of a bite. He is also suffering from a temporary loss of hearing in his left ear.

Meanwhile, Philippe Saint-Andre is a definite non-starter for France's opening Five Nations showdown with England. A recurring thigh injury, originally sustained against the Springboks in November, has sidelined him for at least six weeks. The wing has played only five league games since moving to Gloucester last summer.