MARK Collier was pleased to see his Chippenham Town side make an immediate return to winning ways as they edged out Stratford Town 2-1 at home on Saturday.

The Bluebirds missed the chance to go top of the Premier Division table the previous weekend as they went down at local rivals Frome Town.

However, they did not dwell on that for too long at Hardenhuish Park and got back to form at the first opportunity to remain hot on the heels of leaders Poole Town, with only goal difference keeping Chippenham off the summit.

“We have always come back well after a defeat and I said that to the players before the game. We try to take positives from defeat and that’s what we did,” said Collier.

“We are not second in the league going into March because we are a poor side, we are there because we are a decent side in a very competitive division.

“It shows there is a lot of resolve in the camp and you are just pleased to get back in the clubhouse after the final whistle knowing that you have got the three points.”

Collier conceded the contest was far from an entertaining spectacle, with the Bluebirds largely labouring to the win.

Jay Malpas put the home side ahead after just 12 minutes but Mark Magee restored parity for Stratford soon afterwards.

Andy Sandell restored Chippenham’s advantage just before the half-hour mark and that proved to be the decisive goal as a stalemate ensued in the second period.

Although the performance was far from a stellar one, it is only points that matter to Collier right now as his team look to maintain their title challenge.

“It wasn’t a game that was very pleasing on the eye, although saying that for 20 minutes we were excellent and scored a good goal,” said Collier.

“We then conceded a poor goal through an individual error and it put us on the back foot a bit but we managed to get into half-time 2-1 up and felt we were in decent control of the game.

“The second half wasn’t great but we managed to see it through. We’ve played better this season and lost games, so it was particularly pleasing that we managed to do the scruffy parts of the game and get three points, which at the end of the day is what it’s about.

“We were a bit disappointed with the performance but so were the players and for them to recognise that is pleasing. We will have a discussion about how we can be better and move forward.”