Sutton & Epsom have been crowned London Two South champions with three matches to spare.

Their 29-23 success at Maidstone on Saturday saw them make it 18 wins out of 19 to return to London Division One at the second attempt.

They may consider it their rightful status, having spent the first 17 years after league rugby was introduced in 1988 at that level before being relegated in 2005.

Saturday's win at the sixth-placed Kent side was far from being Sutton's most impressive, but they were missing captain James Clark with a dislocated shoulder and top points scorer Sam Frost with a hamstring injury.

To make life even more difficult the match had to be played on the local grammar school's pitch, which was small with a pronounced slope and greasy surface.

Sutton opened the scoring after 10 minutes when scrum-half Jack Daniels made a clean break 30 metres out and scored between the posts for Simon Green to convert.

It was a lead which Sutton were never to lose, although the scoring alternated throughout the game.

After Maidstone's scrum-half Dave Heads had reduced the deficit with a penalty, Sutton's impressive centre Graham Dowden made a powerful inside break to set up a try for Andy Edwards.

Maidstone responded with an unconverted try of their own when Heads charged down an attempted clearance kick, but a superb run and touch down by Dowden, with Green adding the conversion, put Sutton 19-8 ahead.

Just before the break Maidstone cut the arrears to four points, Harry Stockford going over for Heads to convert.

But Sutton quickly regained control and two minutes into the second-half Dowden scored another try which Green converted.

Heads and Green then exchanged penalties before Maidstone added an unconverted catch and drive try. Both sides went near to scoring in the closing stages.

Sutton's next league game is at home to Tunbridge Wells at Rugby Lane, Cheam, on Saturday March 17 (3pm).