Cheltenham North’s players will be heading to training this week with an extra spring in their step after making it three wins on the bounce in Gloucestershire One with an impressive victory at previously unbeaten leaders Cirencester.

To win at Cirencester, who had won five out of five, was impressive enough, of course, but what made it so eye-catching was the final emphatic scoreline of 41-0.

Cirencester’s cause wasn’t helped by having a player sent off but North veteran Neil Carpenter, who is still playing at the age of 50, said: “That’s the first time in a long time we’ve gone away and pulled off a result like that.

“To nil any side is pretty impressive. We had a couple of new players and the whole team just gelled together.”

One of those new players – scrum-half Sam Coles – scored two tries, as did wing Jahmal Taylor, while there was one try apiece for hooker Nathan Wakefield, fly-half Will Hartland and Bailey Freeman.

Hartland also added a further six points with the boot as the pack, which included new second row signing Dan Hughes, made their presence felt.

“We just got stuck into them,” added Carpenter. “It was almost like going back to the old days of 10 years ago, we got stuck into and upset them a bit.

“We destroyed them in the scrum which was very pleasing for me.”

Carpenter, who has been playing first-team rugby for the North since well before the turn of the century, was in the front row at The Whiteway on Saturday.

These days he also doubles up as the club’s rugby manager – “They like to call me director of rugby,” he laughed – and no one was more pleased with the win on Saturday than him after the club made an uncertain start to the campaign.

“We suffered early on with availabilities and we lost our first two games,” he said. “But we went to Cirencester with a strong side and did the business on them.

“It shows the team and the coaches – Isiah Young, James Wilkins and Brad Hepi – that all the hard work is paying off.”

The North will be hoping to maintain their improved form when they travel to Dursley on Saturday.