Royston Town lost 2-0 away at Tamworth on Tuesday night to lose ground at the top of the Southern League Central Premier Division and see their 10-game unbeaten run come to an end.

The Crows went into the game full of confidence, but knowing they needed to beat fellow promotion-chasers Tamworth to boost their bid at the top.

They got off to a poor start when Dan Crean headed home Tyrell Waite's cross on 12 minutes to put the home side ahead, and that lead was doubled on the hour mark when Ryan Beswick scored a penalty.

The result means Royston drop to fifth in the table, keeping them in a play-off place but seeing them miss out on the chance to go second.

That came after a battling 1-0 win over Banbury United at Garden Walk on Saturday, with a late Matt Bateman penalty securing the victory after a dominant display.

Crows boss Steve Castle believed it was a deserved win, saying: "We played a very resilient Banbury United team, one that for 85 minutes kept us from scoring and were looking like getting a point until a penalty was awarded to us and Matt Bateman stepped up to do the honours to get the three points.

"Did we deserve it? Well, my take on it is yes we did. Banbury were pretty negative and wanted to waste time throughout the match.

"They created little but then again chances were few and far between for both sides.

"In the second half we set about the job of scoring once more, huffing and puffing but never really getting close.

"I do feel that we could have shown more quality in the final third, but then again we can't always hit the heights."

Castle was also pleased to welcome back Taylor Parr from injury after missing all of the campaign so far following a pre-season injury.

"His attitude has been exemplary," said Castle.

"I'm sure it has been tough for him, but at this vital time it's like signing a new player to make our squad even stronger."

Royston are back in league action this weekend when they welcome Rushall Olympic to Garden Walk, knowing only a win will do to get their promotion push back on track.

On Saturday week (February 8), the Crows travel to Ebbsfleet United for their big FA Trophy game, and they will be hoping to continue their giantkilling run in the tournament by knocking out another side from the National League.