BIARRITZ, France (AP) — Masivesi Dakuwaqa has offered apologies to Biarritz teammate Pierre Pagès after viciously biting his cheek during an alcohol-fuelled night out, an incident that has led to the rugby club terminating his contract.
In an interview with L'Equipe newspaper on Tuesday, 2016 Fiji Olympic sevens gold medallist Dakuwaqa said he can't understand why he attacked Pagès when the scrumhalf tried to calm him down after a team party last month at a local restaurant in southern France.
Dakuwaqa became angry and aggressive after several teammates advised him not to drive home. The Fijian player reportedly smashed a car window, prompting Pagès to come over to talk to him. That's when Dakuwaqa bit his teammate, an injury that left his face bloodied and required 20 stitches at a clinic in Biarritz.
“Following the club’s internal investigation, the allegations made against Masivesi Dakuwaqa have made it impossible for him to continue his involvement with the club,” said Biarritz, which plays in the second division.
The club said late Monday it would make no further comment.
Dakuwaqa said he is “tormented by remorse” and can't stop thinking about Pagès. They have not spoken since the incident after his lawyer told him he was not allowed to get in touch with him.
“I’d so much like to apologise to Pierre. To apologise to him and his family,” he said, adding that he was shocked by what he did.
“It should never have happened,” he told L'Equipe. “If I hadn’t been drinking, I’d never have done it. I drank too many beers. I lost my way. We’d organised this meal between players to strengthen our team spirit after a series of defeats.
"Everything was going well. We were telling stories and having a laugh. Then I had a blackout. I can’t remember what happened. I woke up in a drunk tank, without my shirt, wondering what I was doing there. I couldn’t remember a thing. I told myself I’d done something wrong, but I didn’t know what. When the police questioned me, I asked them: ’Why am I here, what have I done? They said, ’You bit someone. I asked them, ‘Who did I bite?’ Then they showed me a photo of Pierre taken from Google.”
The 30-year-old Dakuwaqa was a member of Fiji’s 2016 Olympic gold-medal winning squad.
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The Associated Press
