MELKSHAM Town continued their assault on the Toolstation Premier Division with a 2-0 win over Bitton.

Luke Ballinger got Darren Perrin’s side in the driving seat early on Saturday when he headed the ball home in the 20th minute following some good work from Gary Higdon and Sam Jordan.

The home side were then reduced to 10 men when David Thompson was sent off after a loose tackle in the 65th minute.

But Perrin’s men were able to grind out a win when Higdon snatched a second to seal the result in the 81st minute.

“It was a really tough game and we are delighted to have kept the clean sheet and bag another three points,’’ said Perrin.

“Bitton have improved massively from earlier in the season and they’ll certainly take a lot of points off of other teams now. We were very resilient, there is certainly a togetherness about us at the moment.”

Despite being able to claim the win with 10 men, Perrin blasted the decision to give Thompson a straight red card.

“It was an embarrassing decision from the referee, I don’t think anybody in the whole stadium expected him to be sent off,” he added.

“The bigger picture is it affects us. He’ll miss the game against Bradford Town on Boxing Day and the FA Vase game against Bristol Manor Farm.

“It was just a tackle, the conditions were horrendous the pitch was heavy. He slid in and got the ball at the absolute worse he may have given him a yellow for being slightly reckless.

“Bitton’s reaction didn’t help, they surrounded the referee, it was one of the worst decisions I have seen in many years.”

Next up for Melksham is a tricky encounter with third-placed Street who are level on points with Perrin’s troops, with a superior goal difference separating the two.

“They’re a good side, they’re third in the table for a reason it’s going to be tough but we know if we get a win on Saturday it sets us up for a decent second half of the season,’’ added Perrin.

“After Saturday’s game we will have played all of the top sides twice, plus we have several home games to come.

“Our aim is to finish in the top four, progression for us it to finish higher than we did the year before.”