BEACONSFIELD RFC insist they won't be drawn into local disputes with Marlow and High Wycombe this season.

They are in the Southern Counties North division with High Wycombe and Marlow but say beating their neighbours means less than overall success.

Head coach Simon Tattersall said: “We have to compete every single week – we can’t get sucked into just wanting to beat our local rivals. I’d rather lose to our local rivals and go up.”

His team rallied from an ‘unacceptable’ defeat to Stow on the Wold on the opening day with a return-to-form 39-10 win over Wallingford.

The first try came after only two minutes and four more followed as Tattersall’s team left their opening day blues behind.

Tattersall said: “Our performance against Stow was unacceptable. I told the players that wouldn’t be accepted and training on Tuesday and Thursday was quite brutal.

“But they got their reward on Saturday, when the senior players really stepped up to the mark.”

Losing Jonny Hughes and Andy Zair to Amersham & Chiltern during the close season didn’t help them, while Beaconsfield have also been hindered by a long-term injury to Ed Wagh.

But Ken Kavanagh is back and a new and improved team is trying to break out.

Tattersall said: “We’ve pretty much got a whole new back division and those guys are still finding their feet, but Saturday was a step forward.”

Nick Tappin got the ball rolling before an Andy Brody double alongside tries from Jason Caldwell andJoel Bostock completed the win.

On Saturday they go to Alchester, who have been well-beaten in both their two games.

Tattersall said: “There is still a lot of room for improvement.

“There is no reason why we can’t compete for the top four, but if we’re serious about that then we have to go to Alchester and get a win – that’s not arrogant, that’s a fact.”

A week afterwards Aylesbury come to town with successive derbies against High Wycombe and Marlow in November.