Blaise Nkufo netted the opener seven minutes before the interval and Bryan Ruiz made sure of the triumph for Steve McClaren's league leaders with a fine individual goal two minutes from time.

Second-placed Ajax can reduce the gap back to four points tomorrow by winning at struggling ADO Den Haag.

Maarten Martens and Mounir El Hamdaoui were on target as AZ Alkmaar claimed a 2-0 triumph over sixth-placed FC Utrecht.

Martens fired AZ in front after five minutes and El Hamdaoui doubled the defending champions' advantage from the penalty spot 14 minutes from time.

It was AZ's sixth successive league win, but they remain well adrift of title contention - 23 points behind Twente.

Vitesse Arnhem struck three times in a one-sided second half to claim a comfortable and deserved 3-0 win over FC Groningen which lifted them six points clear of the drop zone.

Claudemir set them on their way with a quarter of the game remaining and Santi Kolk's 20-yard strike and Alexander Buttner's stoppage-time lob made the result safe.

The result was a blow to Groningen's hopes of securing a place in the Europa League play-offs - though they remain eighth, two points ahead of NAC Breda who play Feyenoord tomorrow.

At the other end of the standings, bottom-placed RKC Waalwijk slipped closer to relegation as they were hammered 5-1 at Roda JC.

The best RKC can now hope for is a relegation play-off place after tonight's result left them 13 points adrift of Sparta Rotterdam in the final position of certain safety, and 11 points behind 17th-placed Willem II, with only four games left to play.

The visitors took an early lead through Charlison Benschop's goal but a Morten Skoubo strike and an own goal from Jurgen Colin put the hosts ahead at the break.

And things only got worse for the home team as Mads Junker helped himself to a second-half hat-trick inside 19 minutes.

Sparta's worrying form hit a new low as they were thrashed 4-1 by a Heerenveen side that played with 10 men for more than three quarters of their match.

Heerenveen defender Michael Dingsdag was given his marching orders after just 17 minutes. Joshua John stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick but it was saved by Henk Timmer.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, the hosts led 3-0 at the break after Hernan Losada and Roy Beerens struck either side of a Gerald Sibon penalty.

Erik Falkenburg offered the slightest of consolations when he pulled a goal back on the hour, but even then Losada scored his second after 77 minutes to leave Sparta red-faced.

Frans Adelaar's side have now lost their past five matches and are a single point above the relegation play-off places having played a game more than ADO and Willem II below them.