CORSHAM head coach Tim Draper praised the performance of Chippenham 2nd as his side were denied a bonus-point win while maintaining their 100 per cent winning record at the top of Dorset & Wilts One North.

Two first-half tries from Lewis Jones and Liam Snape, both converted by Kalif Barnes, proved enough for the visiting leaders, who extended their lead courtesy of Warminster's defeat to Swindon 2nd despite being shut out in the second half.

Draper said: "We never really got out of third gear in the game but credit must go to Chippenham, who defended well and put us under a lot of pressure at the breakdown to slow our ball down.

"A number of try scoring opportunities were missed in the second half which was disappointing and is something we need to address for our next game.

"It's a good result on reflection though, especially with Warminster losing at the weekend.''

Melksham leapfrogged Pewsey Vale into fourth place in the table with a 22-19 success at Oakfields.

The visitors hit their stride straightaway scoring two tries through flanker Chris Spence, converted by fly-half James Haynes, and wing Tony Bloomfield through an interception.

But the Melksham rally started with good hands through the backs for Callum Gillard to cross out wide, Simon Foster converting and then adding a penalty.

Pewsey regathered to strike again just after the restart, lock Karl Crosbie going over from a driven maul and Haynes converting but Melksham continued to battle back, scoring from relentless forward pressure through Chris Partt, off the bench.

Foster converted and the match was eventually decided by Melksham prop Paul Hayden, who received the ball at pace to put the home team ahead for the first time.

Bradford on Avon jumped back into third place in the division with a 31-18 triumph at Supermarine.

The visitors eventually pulled away in the final 10 minutes to wrap up their five-point victory, number eight Andrew Twinney scoring a hat-trick of tries and centre Josh Felix crossing twice and adding three conversions.

Weakened Warminster came up short at Swindon 2nd to drop 13 points behind Corsham in second place in the table.

The amber and blues were missing all of their Fijian contingent which meant call ups from the second XV for Jimmy Rees, Ed Read, Sam Couch and Kieran Plummer.

An 11th-hour withdrawal also saw assistant coach Rob Rowbotham again step up to the plate for another 80 minutes and meant the away side had no replacement options.

Despite early pressure, Warminster were unable to get on the scoreboard and, having soaked up the pressure, Swindon broke away to score the game’s first try.

The amber and blues were being frustrated at the breakdown but eventually found a way through, centre Cieran Chester cutting a superb line to be put into a gap by fly-half Jimmy Rees with a well-timed pass. Gavin Pratt added the simple conversion.

With loosehead prop Matty Dunford carrying a knee injury and Rowbotham soldiering on through a shoulder injury, Swindon scored two converted tries in quick succession at the start of the second half to catch Warminster cold to go 19-7 ahead.

Waking from their slumber, Warminster scored a second try through hooker Dan Woods but made a complete hash of the restart as a Swindon player gleefully gathered the ball to score in the corner for another converted try.

Both teams were reduced to 14 men, after Warminster wing Kieran Plummer's high tackle prompted a bout of shoving and a punch from a Swindon opponent that saw him sent off and Chester requiring subsequent stitches in hospital.

But the amber and blues fought back hard with first a try at close range from prop Steve Rowbotham and then a breakaway try from Sam Couch, the second of which was converted.

However, a late Swindon penalty sealed their triumph.