BOCKING Poachers remained top of the Essex Invitation Petanque League after a 3-0 win over basement club, Swan.

The triples and singles games were both won 13-0 but the Swan did better in the pairs as they scored nine points.

Two more Bocking sides, the Spinners and Dyers, were both looking for points to seal their place in the top-six play-offs. The Spinners team of Malcolm Smith, Richard Tite and Christina Knights took the triple 13-6 over Trevor Turner, Paul and Pam Adams.

Smith and Knights then took the pairs 13-11 over Paul and David Adams, while Tite beat Turner 13-3 to secure maximum points.

The good news for the Dyers was the failure of other teams, leaving them safely in a top-six place.

Swan also lost 2-1 to Blackwater U3A, who needed points to move off bottom place.

The final three places in the play-offs are still up for grabs with five teams in contention. Billericay Meadows and Bocking Boules have finished their first round of games and wait for Three Elms, Billericay Lakes and Thorley to complete their fixtures in order to know their final league positions.