DURSLEY have kept their promotions hopes bang on course after hammering Painswick on Saturday.

Dursley are just a point behind second-placed Gordon League and Old Cryptians, in third and take on Old Cryptians away in their final match of the campaign on Saturday.

Painswick, currently bottom of the league, did not have a chance against Dursley last weekend.

Despite a number of the regular squad being unavailable, the team, captained by Max Pullin, needed to pull out a high-scoring performance to keep in touch with their rivals above them in the table.

Dursley put the first points on the board within five minutes when scrum-half Jack Pinker broke through the line to score and fly-half Chris Colston converted. Colston added Dursley’s second try and conversion five minutes later following a good attacking passage of play.

On 17 minutes, prop Tom Haggarty crossed with Colston converting to make it 21-0.

And midway through the half, Colston made a well-placed clearance kick and chase to score, adding the conversion for a 28-0 lead and the try bonus point.

The match was all but over by then and Dursley began to tear Painswick apart.

Ten minutes from the interval, second row Jack Western went over for number five but it went unconverted. Following good hands from the back line, winger Chris Perrett touched down for Dursley’s sixth try and Colston making sure of the extras bringing the half-time score to 40-0.

Dursley began the second-half with a break by Robson to put flanker Mike Goodyear though for a converted try, with hooker Liam Akhurst adding another to go past the half-century and make it 52-0.

Dursley swamped the Painswick defence for flanker Jack Rowe to get an unconverted try, before Pinker jinked through for his second try, which was converted, then full-back Olli Winterbottom sprinted to the line for another.

Dursley were now 71-0 up and with the game drawing to a close, Painswick attacked but the Dursley defence held solid. Second row Silas Winterbottom disrupted the Painswick line-out and set winger Mike Johnson up for a converted try 78-0. With 10 minutes left, centre A J Caddick went under the posts and Pullin added the final try, with Colston kicking the extras, to complete the rout.

Having done everything that was asked of them, Dursley now take on Old Cryptians and will be going for gold.