Brian O'Driscoll scored two tries as Leinster recorded a 26-23 victory over Bourgoin in France tonight.
Having failed to score in the province's landslide 92-17 success at Lansdowne Road last Saturday, O'Driscoll was at his elusive best in the second half of this Heineken Cup pool two match at the Stade Pierre Rajon.
He slalomed over in the left corner on Felipe Contepomi's pass on 46 minutes and darting through the cover with just four minutes remaining, to hand Leinster their fourth success of the campaign.
Laurent Seigne's side did grab a deserved bonus point, on a night when they regained some much-needed pride.
But another picture perfect night from Leinster's New Zealand recruit David Holwell - who kicked four penalties and two conversion - saw Declan Kidney's charges move eight points clear of second-placed Benetton Treviso.
Bourgoin centre Jean Francois Coux's scrambled try on 69 minutes, after a Benjamin Boyet kick had escaped Shane Horgan's grasp, saw the winless home side to a 23-19 lead.
But three critical penalty awards to Leinster in the final minutes paved the way for O'Driscoll's late flash of brilliance.
A sprightly opening from the French, who made 10 changes from their disastrous Dublin trip, was undone by Holwell's neat 20-metre penalty after a turnover from Victor Costello.
Nevertheless, Bourgoin's mentality was right for this one and just four minutes later they took a lead they would hold for the next 40 minutes.
A lineout take by skipper Julien Bonnaire saw new half-back pairing Boyet and Mickael Forest expose Leinster's defence.
Impish fly-half Boyet broke past the flailing Holwell, and shrugged off the challenges of Shane Horgan and Malcolm O'Kelly to end his 20-metre run in a superb try.
Leading 7-3, the 25-year-old Boyet screwed a drop goal attempt to the left in the 11th minute, but with the visitors encroaching, full-back Alexandre Peclier - Bourgoin's top scorer in their run to second in the French championship - tagged on a 30-metre penalty.
The kickers then went tit-for-tat in falling temperatures, as Holwell swapped lengthy efforts with Peclier for 13-6 before drilling over a brilliant 50-metre strike on 26 minutes.
Another from the former Wellington pivot - his 22nd success from 24 kicks in Europe - kept Kidney's side well in it at the break, just 13-12 down.
Following three neat forward phases, Argentinian Contepomi drew the tackles for O'Driscoll to outpace Peclier for the corner nine minutes after the restart, and hand Leinster back the lead.
With the Leinster lineout misfiring, and Bourgoin's pack upping the intensity, the decision went right down to the wire.
Horgan was out-jumped in the air for Bourgoin's second try as Coux just got the touchdown before Contepomi.
But O'Driscoll's stunning line break past the try scoring centre, Glen Davis and finally Peclier kept the Leinster machine on course for a home quarter-final.
