3 January 2010: Bourgoin end the Parisians' nine-match winning streak, Bayonne slip up again and Castres and Clermont just can't stop scoring

Racing-Metro 17 Bourgoin 18; Bayonne 13 Toulouse 15; Castres 44 Albi 10; Clermont 39 Toulon 3; Montauban 6 Stade Francais 6; Brive 29 Perpignan 9; Biarritz 26 Montpellier 10 - Latest league table

Just as everyone was looking forward to their record-equalling showdown with Perpignan next weekend, Racing-Metro's winning streak came to a surprise end as they lost 17-18 at home to lowly visitors Bourgoin.

Racing - showing several changes from their midweek win at Bayonne - were 11-0 down after just 14 minutes and still trailing 18-7 10 minutes into the second half before a late comeback saw them close the gap to a single point. They could even have stolen a victory in the dying minutes, as first Francois Steyn's optimistically long penalty attempt fell short, and then Jonathan Wisniewski missed a drop goal with the last kick of the game.

Bourgoin's rapid start came courtesy of a penalty and drop goal from Benjamin Boyet bookending a 10th minute try from lock Camille Levast. Racing finally found their way into the game and eventually scored on 32 minutes, flanker Johnny Leo'o scoring after a powerful charge from Sebastien Chabal.

The teams turned round with Bourgoin 11-7 up, but the visitors extended their lead on 50 minutes when winger Albert Vuli Vuli raced in under the posts for his second try of the season. Boyet converted for an 18-7 lead that Racing only closed on the hour, Wisniewski scoring the Parisians' second try and converting it himself, before adding a drop goal five minutes later to set up a one-point finale.

But even though Bourgoin were a man down following the yellow carding of prop Vincent Pelo, Racing failed to set up a scoring chance until the last few minutes, Steyn and Wisniewski failing with their chances as Racing succumbed to their first league defeat since September 20.

"We knew we had the means to beat Racing, and that we'd have to throw it wide to win," said Bourgoin coach Eric Catinot. "If we were heroic during the last 10 minutes, we had already built our success on a running game. I know this team is capable of great things."

As it happens, avoiding the drop will constitute a successful season for the Easterners, a task made a little easier by Bayonne's home 13-15 defeat to Toulouse. The Basques' performance was a vast improvement on recent outings, and they could have nicked it at the death only for Cedric Garcia's last-second penalty to fall way short.

Atrocious conditions made it difficult for either side to play a wide game, especially frustratingly so for Bayonne for whom wingers Pepito Elhorga and Benjamin Fall returned from injury.

A rain-soaked first half ended six-all with Bayonne's Cedric Garcia and Toulouse's Jean-Baptiste Elissalde kicking two penalties each, but the hosts will feel agrieved not to have taken an 11th minute lead when flanker Guillaume Bernard took a pass from centre Sam Gerber, broke through the first line of defence and pulled off an exquisite sidestep round full back Clement Poitrenaud, only to be called back by the referee, who adjudged Gerber's pass to have been forward.

The stalemate only lasted three minutes of the second half, Elissalde using the following wind to kick a 40-metre drop goal. With Toulouse totally dominant, Florian Fritz attempted a prodigious 57 metre penalty, and although he missed that one, Elissalde added a 47-metre goal on 52 minutes and, 15 minutes from time, made it 15-6 with an easier kick from right in front of the posts.

Toulouse appeared to be coasting to a soggy win, but Benjamin Fall set up a grandstand finish with a try five minutes from time. From a scrum five to the left of the posts, fly half Craig Gower spread it wide and Thibault Lacroix delivered the scoring pass. Fall appeared to drop the ball as he evaded the tacklers, but got the benefit of the video ref and Garcia's touchline conversion cut the gap to two points.

A revitalised Bayonne stayed on the front foot, but Fall and flanker Remy Martin were both guilty of knock-ons in the tricky conditions, and the visitors' pack appeared to be picking-and-going its way towards the final whistle until they were adjudged to have held on to a ball on the ground and Bayonne were awarded a penalty on the halfway touchline. Opting for a shot at goal rather than edging forward for a drop goal attempt, Garcia had the aim but not the distance, and it was left to Shaun Sowerby to kick the ball into touch and move Toulouse up to third.

The top two brought their total New Year tallies up to 165 points, Castres beating Albi 44-10 and Clermont marking an impressive 39-3 victory over Toulon.

Cameron McIntyre scored two of Castres' six tries against the basement-dwellers, Marc Andreu, Romain Teulet, Chris Masoe and Iosefa Tekori scoring the others, with Albi scrum-half Kevin Boulogne threatening their bonus point with a try just before half time.

Castres' task was made easier after the break when first lock Paul Guffroy and fly-half Frederic Manca were sent to the sinbin after the interval, and then replacement scrum-half Sebastien Pages saw red for a headbut on Castres prop Luc Ducalcon.

Clermont's five-try rout of Toulon was also helped by the binnings of visiting flankers Joe van Niekerk and Joe El-Abd. Les Auvergnats scored 24 of their 39 points against 14 men, with four of their tries coming in the second half after Jamie Cudmore's 31st minute opener.

Morgan Parra, Mario Ledesma, Julien Malzieu and Kevin Senio all crossed in the second half, with Parra adding 12 points with the boot.

Sebastien Fauqé kicked a drop goal for Toulon early in the second half after Jonny Wilkinson had missed three long-rang penalty attempts and a 30-metre drop goal before Fauqué took his place at half time. But with Clermont's Brock James coming off the bench to kick just the one penalty, the Englishman is still the Top 14's leading points scorer.

Third-placed Noel Oelschig's hand injury meant he couldn't close the gap on those two leaders, but he wouldn't have had many chances at Montauban anyway, where Stade Francais forced their fourth draw of the season. Lionel Beauxis kicked two penalties in the 6-6 stalemate, with Cedric Rosalen breaking the deadlock with a 34th minute penalty and giving Montauban a short-lived lead with a 65th minute drop goal.

It was a bit more lively at Stade Amédée-Domenech, where Brive comfortably beat champions Perpignan 29-9. Les Brivistes even picked up a bonus point thanks to tries from Georgian prop Davit Khinchagishili (a name we can confidently confirm cut-and-paste was made for), full back Alexis Palisson and South African centre Ron Cooke.

Palisson could only convert his own 69th minute try, but added two penalties on the stroke of half-time for an 11-3 interval lead, and two more in the second period.

Steve Meyer kicked three penalties for USAP, who saw injury added to insult with the loss of centre pairing Maxime Mermoz and David Marty. Both went off in the first half, Mermoz with a shoulder injury that is thought not to be broken as was thought at the time, and Marty with what our dictionary tells us was a crutch in the left thigh. Hey, I'm all for players battling on through injury, but bringing a crutch onto the pitch?

Perpignan slip to fifth, while Brive move away from the bottom five and are only within four points of the final play-off place now occupied by Biarritz, who also earned a bonus point in their 26-10 win over Montpellier.

Centre Arnaud Mignardi scored a try in each half for the Basques, with full back Ian Balshaw coming into the line to take a scoring pass from Takudzwa Ngwenya on 30 minutes, and the American winger earning the bonus point with a try of his own on 47 minutes.

Montpellier No.8 Marc Giraud scored a late consolation try in the final minutes, but the result was never in doubt as Biarritz sealed their first back-to-back wins since October.