MALDON enjoyed a convincing 61-3 victory over neighbours Burnham in their final Essex League division 1B game before Christmas.

They had a line-up that saw many players back in their preferred positions, with a bench debut for Jack Scrutton at flanker and a first start for Patrick Johnson at loose-head prop.

The first ten minutes saw some brilliant pressure applied by Maldon, with Jack White kicking deep into the December mists, gaining territory in Burnham’s 22.

Clearance kicks failed to find touch, with winger Steve Hudd gathering the ball and sending it to straight back down the pitch, creating an opportunity for Bradley White to sneak in at the corner.

Sam Langston converted neatly to extend Maldon’s lead.

Maldon came straight back out of the gate to steal in Burnham’s half, gaining a penalty after some hard graft at the breakdown.

White found touch and Maldon looked to rumble a maul, marshalled by Jack Mills, but they were held up by an admirable Burnham defence.

Where brawn failed, a cross-field kick to try machine Sam Langston saw Maldon cross again.

Langston only missed one conversion on a day where fog covered most of the ground.

A high-tempo game continued for the next 20 minutes, with further tries from William Blakemore, Hudd and a further two for Langston.

The final action of the half saw Maldon concede a number of penalties across the whole pitch, eventually conceding three points to Burnham.

Maldon’s half-time talk centred around maintaining control and cutting out silly errors.

Coach Judd was keen for Maldon to continue to develop their phase play and Maldon began the second half in a clinical fashion.

James Bennett’s tireless work at seven saw him gathering many a lost ball and taking command of the forwards around the breakdown.

Burnham began to fold under further pressure, with Langston dancing over for his fourth try of the game.

Seeking to seal off the win, Maldon played smart, heads up rugby, opting for secure lineouts.

Mills found Bennett in the opposition half to provide Blakemore with running ball to touch down for his second try of the game.

Maldon continued their aggressive play, with scrum-half Ryan Patel controlling the pack, ensuring the ball was safely retained at the back of a messy ruck and giving his side the opportunity to play through hands and for Langston to cross a fifth time.

Maldon's man-of-the-match was Langston, after scoring five tries and eight out of nine kicks converted.