Royston Town returned to winning ways to keep up their Southern League Central Premier Division promotion charge on Saturday, as they beat Rushall Olympic 3-1.

Josh Castiglione opened the scoring inside six minutes to get the Crows off to the perfect start, and the lead was doubled on the half-hour mark when Scott Bridges found the net.

Danny Waldron's deflected shot on 66 minutes got Rushall back into the game, but a superb Castiglione chip in the closing moments of the game made it 3-1 to secure an important win that keeps Royston fourth in the table and just three points off the top.

Crows boss Steve Castle was delighted to get back to winning ways after a disappointing defeat to Tamworth on Tuesday.

"We had a bit of a downer last Tuesday against Tamworth, but rather than dwell on it we pushed on and responded with a resounding 3-1 win," he said.

"That doesn't quite tell the whole story, though, as I do believe that Rushall Olympic were decent on the day and that our great finishing was the difference between the two teams.

"Obviously with home advantage and a new 3G pitch to play on, Rushall had one up on us, but we were resilient in our play and took our chances which were ultimately the deciding factors.

"A testament to Rushall Olympic though is that they are a very good team and they will not get beat too many times on that surface."

Castle and Royston can now look ahead to Saturday's big FA Trophy third-round clash against National League side Ebbsfleet United.

"I can tell you now that all of our boys are right up for it," added Castle.

"The scenario is that we are a team that is used to winning. It doesn't matter that it is at two levels lower than our opponents.

"They are used to contesting games and hopeful of gaining a point which to be fair to them they have achieved recently.

"I do feel that in most matches, regardless of the level it is the mindset that is crucial. Go about it and be positive, that is our message. We have nothing to lose.

"As the lower league club, we are expected to lose and I'm sure that the bookies will be putting us as outsiders, but bet on us to lose at your peril.

"I've been involved in football for many years now and the togetherness of this group is incredible. They are enjoying their time and excelling more times than not. We will be taking a little rest from training for the players to recover, but will be back on it on Thursday."