Oxfordshire comfortably retained their place in the elite A Division after finishing third in a tough preliminary group at Wakefield against Yorkshire, Cheshire, Lancashire and Nottinghamshire over the weekend.

The effects of travelling up to the event on the Saturday morning resulted in a slow start and an opening 4-0 defeat against the hosts, followed by a 3-1 reverse against Cheshire, Richard Foreman scoring the goal.

Day two proved more fruitful, starting with a 3-2 victory over 2007 champions Notts. Tom Sobey, Foreman and Tyson Nunneley were the marksmen.

In their last outing, Oxonwere awarded a walkover against Lancashire, who had to withdraw from their final game.