These are exciting times for Dursley Rugby Club.

Their flagship team are setting a quick pace at the top of Gloucestershire One South, having won 10 out of 10 so far.

They have opened up an eight-point lead on closest rivals St Mary’s Old Boys and are certain to go into the Christmas break on top of the tree.

That’s something that obviously delights club captain Andrew Plumridge who has been one of the mainstays in the 1^st XV this season.

Plumridge is in his first season as club captain – it’s the first time that Dursley have had a club captain for a number of years – and the 35-year-old is relishing the role.

“Tom Jepps is our first-team captain,” explained Plumridge, “but I still have a role on the pitch. Tom plays in the centre and I’m a forward, I’m the forwards captain.

“And if Tom isn’t on the pitch I take over as captain the majority of the time.”

And it’s an arrangement that is clearly working very well.

“It’s something that our new head coach Rich Timbrell has brought in,” continued Plumridge, who was elected to his new role. “He’s made some positive changes.

“We’ve reorganised the club and my role is to oversee the whole club. We have three senior teams and I work with all three captains.

“I do the graft behind the scenes with the senior rugby manager Josh Bailey who organises a lot of the administration for the senior men’s section.

"I’m the link between the players and the committee – I’m the players’ rep – and I’m the club’s representative at the Combination.”

Essentially he’ll do whatever is required to move the club forward, a club with which he has close ties.

“I’ve been with the club most of my adult life,” he said. “When I was growing up I played football but once I got into rugby I never looked back.

“I had a couple of years with Stroud in my late teens but Dursley have always been my club.”

Not that Plumridge has always been able to play for them because his job in the Army often took him away from the town where he was brought up.

Happily that is not the case this season.

“I’m based at Warminster at the moment but I’m living in Dursley so I’m able to get to training on Tuesdays and Thursdays and matches on Saturdays,” he said. “Previously to that it was a bit sporadic.”

Dursley are certainly pleased that he is able to play week in, week out this season.

“I’ve been playing second row but I can play anywhere from 1 to 8,” said Plumridge, who is a big supporter of new coach Timbrell.

“He’s brought some structure to our game,” he said, “he’s there every week, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Our strength definitely lies in our pack and has done for a good few seasons.

“We dominate up front, we’ve got a good scrum and we’re strong in defence.”

But Plumridge is quick to add that it is not just about the forwards.

“We’ve got a dominant fly-half, we’ve not had one for a few seasons,” he said. “He’s a young lad but he’s changed it for us, he’s been that good.

“He’s been the link between us winning the ball and getting the ball out into the backs.”

That young fly-half is Charlie Davison and he’s still only 19.

“He’s got a good rugby brain for someone so young,” continued Plumridge. “He’s always wanting to improve. If he misses a kick at goal or to touch, he thinks about how he can do better.

“He’d played a bit at Tetbury but knew a couple of players at Dursley, he decided to come here and we’ve not looked back.”

Plumridge isn’t looking back either.

“We want to get out of this league,” he said. “The leagues are being reorganised but we want to get higher. We’re playing Level 9 but we want to play at Level 8.

“We want a challenge and for the first time for a while we’ve got a bit of a strength in depth. We are very much a cohesive unit, a good solid unit.

“It’s great to win all these games but we want good competition.”