COLIN Bush saluted the bumper Corsham crowd on Saturday as 101 supporters turned up at the Southbank to watch the Reds overcome a strong Bitton outfit.

Bush issued a rallying cry to fans two weeks ago in the Wiltshire Times and Chippenham News and the Corsham boss said he was delighted with the reaction. He said: "The article was never meant to criticise anyone, just to gather local support. It was a brilliant response by the people of Corsham.

"To see 101 people there when Chippenham were at home and Calne were playing Bideford down the road was great. "I hope people enjoyed it enough to come back again. We've got two cup semi-finals and a league title to play for so there will be lots of football."

Bush is hoping for an even bigger turnout for tomorrow's Premier Divison clash with Frome Town, when the 112-seat stand will be officially opened. Said Bush: "The stand is a tribute to ex-chairman Colin Hudd and everyone on the committe. Now it's time for the people to fill it and enjoy it."

The crowd certainly enjoyed the game on Saturday. Goals from leading scorer Toby Colbourne and winger John Eldred sealed a comfortable 2-0 win. Bush said: "We've had three tough games in seven days and although we did not play to our best, we came through unscathed.

"The league is still Bideford's to throw away but we are enjoying putting pressure on them. There's 21 points to play for and the top teams are bound to take points off each other."