IT MAY not have been the performance that Fairford Town manager Gareth Davies was looking for but their 3-1 win away to New College kept them at the top of the Hellenic League Division One West table.

First-half goals from Danny Hale and Nathan Gambling had the visitors in the driving seat after a bright opening half-hour, however a great strike from Adam Bright three minutes before the break made for an anxious second half.

College were unable to assert the pressure needed to get the equaliser and as they pushed in the dying minutes, Fairford broke through via Hale, who set up James Lawrence-Forbes to secure the points.

With nearest rivals Carterton not in action and Cheltenham Saracens being held to a goalless draw away to Easington Sports, Davies’ men extended their lead at the top back to four points and that was all the mattered for the Cinder Lane boss.

“We had to change the shape because Scott Chilcott was injured and we had to deal with things,” he said.

“It is another win filed in the ‘ugly’ category.

“Shape-wise, we were a little bit sloppy because we had to change it.

“In the first half, we should have come in six or seven up, easy; a ridiculous amount of chances.

“We don’t make things easy - that is just not us anymore.

“Fair play to them. They were decent and knocked the ball around well and gave us a run for our money.

“We weren’t quite at the race but, with all of those chances, we took a couple, and it is just about winning games to keep the pace.”

Meanwhile, Mark Teasdale was left ruing the fact that his young College side lacked the belief that they could come back and claim at least a point from the game as they remain joint-bottom with Tytherington Rocks, who were beaten 4-1 by Purton.

“It has been the story of our season,” he said.

“We don’t make teams work for goals as we should; whether that is a bit of naivety in our defending or it is because they are up against experienced older players.

“It is good that they got back into the game the way we did. The goal was a really good strike.

“No disrespect to Fairford, but they weren’t at their best and I told the boys at half time that we were in the game and they just had to believe.

“The hardest thing for me is; yes the boys are fit, they can play football and can do all that, but when they play against older, wiser players, it just makes life a little bit difficult.

“We don’t have that experience in the side.”

Purton’s Ben Carter scored all four goals as his side romped to victory at Tytherington.

Carter opened the scoring on six minutes and although an own goal pegged back Justin Miller’s side just after the half-hour, Carter struck three times in seven minutes at the start of the second half to wrap up the points.