Dartford have climbed into the National League South play-off positions for the first time this season.

They extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches with a comfortable win over Bath City at Princes Park on Saturday, playing some of their best football this season.

Andy Pugh scored two excellent goals in the first half, Ryan Hayes added a third after the break and although the visitors pulled one back, Darts defender Callum McNaughton rounded things off nicely with his first league goal for the club.

Pugh replaced George Sykes in manager Tony Burman's only change from the 1-1 draw with Chelmsford two weeks earlier, leading the attack for Dartford.

Injuries again ruled out defender Lee Burns and midfielder Lee Noble although wingers Jack Simmons and Kaka Dembele, having returned from their loan spells at Canvey Island and Leatherhead respectively, were both named among the substitutes.

Bath arrived having won just one of their last nine matches - at Ebbsfleet - and they made three changes. Chas Hemmings, Dave Pratt and Elliot Richards started in place of Ashley Kington, Nick McCootie and Andy Watkins.

Danny Harris' long ball over the top almost gave Pugh a shooting chance inside the first minute.

Harris and Hayes pushed right up in support of Pugh when Dartford were in possession as Burman encouraged his side to take the fight to their West Country visitors.

Elliot Bradbrook tried his luck from the right-hand side of the penalty area and the captain's curling shot forced goalkeeper Steve Phillips to concede a corner.

Pugh was looking sharp for Dartford and after Bath's Frankie Artus had dragged a left-footed shot well wide, he fired the home side into a 16th-minute lead. Bath lost possession in their right-back position and Pugh showed a cool head to plant the ball across Phillips and into the net via the inside of the far post.

The game then went through a scrappy phase, with both teams misplacing passes. Ronnie Vint tangled with Bath striker Pratt, who seemed intent on winding up the home defence, and Pratt kicked out at Vint on the floor but the incident was missed by referee Paul Kelly.

Dartford doubled their lead on 34 minutes. Tom Wynter delivered a free-kick into the box and when the ball fell at Pugh's feet, he lashed a half-volley into the roof of the net from around 12 yards. Phillips got a hand to Pugh's left-footed strike but the power on it carried the ball past him.

The visitors saw more of the ball late in the first half but lacked the creativity to open Dartford up. And they were almost caught on the counter-attack when Deren Ibrahim caught a cross and picked out Harris with a superb long-distance kick - the Bath defence just recovering in time to prevent a third goal.

Bath boss Lee Howells sent on forward Andy Watkins for the second half but it made little difference. Two players went into the book for poor tackles as City began to look increasingly ragged and ill-disciplined.

Watkins and Artus both had shots blocked but Dartford made it 3-0 on the hour.

Mark Onyemah, who's just agreed a new loan deal from Luton, dug out a good cross from the left and Hayes, arriving late, met it with a superb volley which flashed past Phillips and into the corner.

Bath looked a beaten side now and when captain Andy Gallinagh lashed a shot high over the bar following some tidy build-up, it rather summed up their afternoon.

A cross from Hayes almost deflected in for an own goal at the other end. He then had a great chance to make it 4-0 when Simmons picked him out in space but Phillips got behind the winger's low shot.

Pratt netted a consolation for Bath when he swivelled and fired the ball into the top corner but it was Dartford who had the final word.

McNaughton turned in a Barry Cogan cross three minutes from time, restoring the Darts' three-goal advantage and underlining their superiority.

Dartford: Ibrahim, Gardiner, Onyemah, Vint, McNaughton, Adams, Hayes, E Bradbrook, Pugh (T Bradbrook 75mins), Wynter (Simmons 67mins), Harris (Cogan 69mins). Subs not used: Sykes, Dembele.

Bath: Phillips, Bowman, Greenslade (Watkins 46mins), Simpson (Smith 17mins), Batten, Gallinagh, Hemmings, Artus, Pratt, Richards (McCootie 62mins), Adelsbury. Subs not used: Williams, Kington.

Attendance: 923.