CHIPPENHAM Town maintained their place at the top of the Premier Division - but Mark Collier's side made hard work of proceedings until two goals in the final quarter of an hour reflected their overall superiority.

A brace apiece from Dave Pratt and Matt Jones gave the Bluebirds' largest crowd of the season plenty to cheer about.

Both sides had an early chance with Jones flashing a shot wide and Cirencester's Ollie Knight firing just too high.

Chippenham opened the scoring on 18 minutes when visiting keeper Harvey Rivers made a hash of Greg Tindle's long ball forward, allowing Pratt to steal in and round him before finding the net from a narrow angle.

Five minutes later Jones doubled the lead when Rivers could only turn his headed effort onto a post and the ball trickled over the line.

Before the break Jones turned and shot over and then saw another effort blocked by a visiting defender.

Rivers went some way to redeeming himself when he tipped over an effort from Andy Sandell.

After the break Knight's shot from out wide floated wide whilst Alex Ferguson's shot bounced up into Rivers's arms.

After a Chippenham attack broke down Cirencester broke quickly on 53 minutes and a low cross from the right was turned in by skipper Matt Liddiard.

Ferguson and Jones then both failed to find the target whilst Kent Kauppinen did well to touch over a free kick from Chris Taylor.

Sandell headed over a Michael Pook corner before Chippenham made the game safe on seventy five minutes.

Sandell played an exquisite curling ball into the middle where Pratt controlled it and turned to fire a shot past Rivers.

Pratt almost notched his third on 81 minutes when he blazed wide from close in.

Knight shot over the Chippenham bar on 88 minutes. but in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Jones received the ball wide out on the right touch line and superbly curled a shot into the far top corner.

Chippenham: Kauppinen, McCormack (Preece 83), Felix, Pook, Tindle, Richards, Ferguson, Smith (Griffin 56), Pratt, Sandell (Allen 79), Jones.

Subs not used: Guthrie, Jenkinson.

Referee: Dale Wootton (Cheltenham)

Attendance: 468