ENGLAND U18 stars Fraser Clilverd and Sam Alford returned to the club where they started their rugby and helped Chippenham to victory in the Bath Combination Sevens title on Sunday.
Played at Old Culverhaysians Glasshouse Ground in Bath, the Allington Field outfit, who will delve into uncharted waters next season after their promotion to South West One, had too much pace and firepower for final opponents Old Sulians.
Chippenham ran away with the final 34-5, exorcising the demons of their last trip to the city, when they surprisingly lost the Bath Combination Cup final at The Rec last month to Walcot, costing them a record fourth successive victory in that competition.
In reaching this decider they had a tough 24-19 semi-final win over tournament favourites Oldfield Old Boys.
Having gone to a 17-0 half-time lead with tries from Darren McMillan, Sam Alford and Ryan Surry, Chippenham found themselves 19-17 down with just two minutes left on the clock.
A break from the half-way line by Surry saw him score his second try of the game and seal Chippenham a place in the final.
With the fitness of their England representatives showing through, the final turned out to be a much more one sided affair, Bath Academy flanker Clilverd's early try matched by his Bath and England team mate Alford after only two minutes.
Further tries from Surry and Matt Spurway extended Chippenham's lead to 22-0 at half-time and the contest was as good as over.
Using all three replacements at the break, Chippenham kept the pressure on Sulians and the next score came after a break from half-way by Alford. This was finished off by Clilverd, who cut a clever line to outpace the waiting Sulians defence.
Chippenham's final score of the game came fittingly from flanker, Gary Squires, whose fitness levels impressed all afternoon.
Head coach Rob Alford returned home up the A4 much happier than last time he oversaw a side in Bath, but said a season that teetered on the brink of disaster after the Walcot loss was wonderfully capped by the sevens win.
"We went to The Rec a couple of weeks ago looking to win the Combination Cup for the fourth time in a row and didn't quite manage to pull it off against Walcot.
"Since then, we've stitched up promotion to South West One and winning the sevens, which is always a bit of fun and hugely competitive, was a great way to round off the season," he said.
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