Toulouse saw their push for a top-three finish dealt an untimely blow on Saturday with defeat at Grenoble.
Toulouse slip, while Monaco and Nantes taste success
Toulouse saw their push for a top-three finish dealt an untimely blow on Saturday with defeat at Grenoble.
Elsewhere, Nancy, Monaco and Nantes were among those to pick up maximum points this weekend.
The shock of the day, though, came at
Grenoble where the hosts saw off high-flying
Toulouse 1-0.
Laurent Courtois' penalty five minutes before the interval proved to be the difference between the two sides.
Caen slipped into the relegation zone after they went down 2-1 at home to fellow strugglers
Nancy.
Youssouf Hadji fired the visitors in front inside the opening minute, before Sambou Yatabare brought the scores level on the stroke of half-time.
Substitute Geoffrey Adjet then rounded off the scoring on 84 minutes as he snatched a dramatic winner.
Monaco also left it late before emerging from their contest against
Rennes with a 3-1 victory.
The tie was goalless heading into the final 15 minutes, but Lucien Aubey's dismissal then turned the game in the home side's favour.
Jerko Leko converted from the spot, before Juan Pablo Pino doubled that advantage on 83 minutes.
Bruno Cheyrou pulled one back for Rennes two minutes later, but Pino put the seal on a remarkable night when he bagged his second of the game in the closing stages.
Nantes clambered out of the relegation zone after securing a 2-0 win against
Nice.
Christian Bekamenga (19) and Mamadou Bagayoko (89) were on target in a game which also saw Gerald Cid sent off 10 minutes into the second half.
Auxerre moved back into the top half of the table with a narrow 1-0 success on the road at
Sochaux.
Thomas Kahlenberg's 83rd minute strike settled the tie at Auguste-Bonal.
Le Mans secured a second consecutive victory as they proved too strong for
Valenciennes.
Gregory Cerdan opened the scoring four minutes into the second half for Daniel Jeandupeux's side, before Anthony Le Tallec secured all three points with a second after 66 minutes.
The final game on a busy evening of action saw
St Etienne prevail 2-1 in a home date with
Lille.
The success helps to boost the hosts' survival bid, while it also puts a dent in Lille's European endeavours.
Ilan Dell'igna (50) and Bafetimbi Gomis (66) did the damage for St Etienne, while Nicolas Fauvergue grabbed a 71st minute consolation for the visitors.
