Grove kept their Southern Counties North promotion play-off hopes alive with a hard-earned 20-0 victory at Buckingham in their last game of the regular season.

The victory puts Grove in second position, but they will be overtaken for the runners-up spot if Beaconsfield win their last two games.

Salisbury have already finished second in the Southern Counties South and will play either Beaconsfield or Grove for a spot in South West Division 2 East next season.

After Andy Tutty had missed two penalty goal attempts, Grove took the lead with a try by the long-striding lock Mike Turner.

Then elusive centre Ali James weaved his way past three tacklers to to double thelead by half-time.

From the restart, fly half Dean Hammett dropped a goal. But there followed a period when tempers flared before Turner charged over for his second try which was converted by centre Paul Cuddon.

Chipping Norton struggled to contain the big Swindon pack as they slipped to a 20-15 defeat.

Chippy could not play the wide expansive game they had planned until the second half, by which time they trailed 15-5.

Adam Smith, Mark Evans and Ian Waldron scored tries for Chippy. But the home side always kept their noses in front.