CHIPPENHAM captain Steve Silk congratulated his players on a fantastic season despite their poor recent form ending hopes of successive promotions.

The Bristol Road club were in pole position to go up with three games to go as they sat in second place with an eight point advantage.# However a trio of end-of-season defeats, including losses to struggling local rivals Warminster and Trowbridge saw them finish in fifth place.

“We haven’t deserved to go up with the way we’ve played in the past couple of weeks,” said Silk.

“But overall it’s been a fantastically successful season.

“The first team have done fantastically with six or seven players hitting fifties and three or four of our key bowlers have done really well.

“To be where we were with a few games to go is a massive success because at the start of the season, after promotion last year, I would have been happy to stay in the league.

“Not only that but the second team won their league as well and the thirds won all of their last five games.”

Opener Andrew Wilson (24) top-scored for Chippenham on Saturday in a disappointing batting performance.

“We knew what might have happened as they have the two best bowlers in the league in Chad Barrett and Matt Bulbeck,” he said.

Chippenham ended up in fifth spot in the table.