Biarritz ended Edinburgh Reivers' hopes of making it three Heineken Cup wins on the trot at the Parc de Sports Aguilera.

Down by 17 points at half-time the the Reivers battled back gamely but were never going to overhaul the French side.

The Reivers failed to capitalise on early pressure and were duly punished when ageing fly-half Frano Botica slotted two penalties to give the home side a six-point cushion.

Duncan Hodge atoned for an earlier miss when he thumped over a 40-metre kick on 29 minutes to hit back.

The front row forward first drove over from close range after his initial surge had been rebuffed by the visitors and then completed a sweeping move which had seen the Reivers ripped apart.

And, with former All Black and Wigan rugby league ace Botica adding both conversions, the Frenchmen enjoyed a commanding 20-3 interval lead.

Botica continued to make Reivers suffer with a further penalty double on the restart, but the Scots refused to buckle and were rewarded with two fine touchdowns.

Lock Nathan Hines notched the first in 58 minutes, only to depart soon after with what looked like a nasty leg injury.

Winger Cammy Murray added the second in 69 minutes with an opportunist effort, while Hodge's conversion suddenly saw the deficit to just eight points.

However, Botica's fifth penalty ended the challenge, with Hodge's final successful kick a mere consolation.