Steve Kimber stayed on course for his fourth successful league title as he saw off nearest rival Nigel Marley in the penultimate round at Cirencester Park.

The Headington ace was pushed hard by Marley, but had opened up a gap of ten seconds at the line to move three points clear with just one round to go.

Should Kimber compete in the final round at Clanfield next month, he need only finish in the top three to secure the title again, while Marley’s best hope would be a surprise slip-up from Kimber.

White Horse Harrier Job King finished sixth at Cirencester, and is well-placed to clinch third place in the senior men’s competition.

He staved off the challenge of Marc Fallows (Cirencester), and leads Fallows by three points going into the last round.

Kimber’s Headington team have all but clinched the title.

They will go into the final round with an enormous 521-point lead.

That will be totally insurmountable for Cirencester A in second place, unless Headington have a no-show at Clanfield.

In the vet 40 category, Newbury’s Wayne Lillis looks to have done enough to seal the title ahead of Headington’s Vasili Zverev, while Bryan Vaughan, who finished 41st here, now leads the vet 50 standings by 65 points from Oxford City’s Trevor Dixon.

The vet 60 men’s title looks set to go to City’s Roy Treadwell, who leads Abingdon Ambler Thornton Greenland by 142 points.

In the women’s category, it has been a number of years since Oxford City won a ladies’ match.

But, led by the remarkable 15-year-old Melissa Hawtin, they did just that at Cirencester.

Hawtin cruised to victory in the women’s race, clocking 23.46 to defeat White Horse Harrier Frances Briscoe by a huge margin.

Eighteen-year-old debutant Milly Kempton was 12th, with Martha Lloyd, 19, in 14th to bring home the overall team prize.

City’s ladies look a sure bet to take the Division 2 title as they lead by 148 points going into the last round.

With Hawtin unable to take her place in the senior women’s rankings, the title looks set to go to Briscoe, although she will be pushed hard by Team Kennet’s Rachel Elliott in the last round.

Briscoe holds the slenderest of leads, but should have enough in the tank to hold off her title rival.

Backed by Helen Brackenbury (55th) and Clare Hazell (61st), Harriers’ senior women’s team ended the day seventh.

Sue Francis (Team Kennet) is odds-on to seal the vet 35 women’s crown, taking a 12-point lead into the last round, while Banbury Harrier Ros Kelling looks to have already wrapped up the vet 45 title.

In the vet 55 section, Abingdon’s Noel Blatchford is 16 points adrift of the leader, Lilly Bennett, and so will need to finish 17 places ahead of her rival if she is to clinch the title.