Enfield Ignatians coach Emile Hertz watched his side crash to a 50-15 defeat against London Two North East leaders Ipswich and admitted it was one of his most disappointing afternoons in charge.

Ignatians made a promising start after Andy Roper went over but Ipswich took charge midway through the opening half and they proved far too strong for the visitors.

Chris Blom (two), Carlton Littlechild (two), Corne Els, Jermaine Watson, Liam Brittain and Will Davies all scored for the title challengers.

Speaking after the defeat, Hertz said: “This is one of my most disappointing afternoons as a coach, particularly as we have been working hard on our defensive patterns for the last two weeks.

“However, we over committed to the breakdown and most of the damage was done out wide.”

Roper’s try was a brief highlight in a disappointing display from Ignatians, whose promotion hopes were dented by the comprehensive defeat.

After their encouraging start, Ignatians were literally backed into a corner and struggled to escape.

The visitors twice had kicks charged down which led to tries.

A Jordan Wilson penalty had brought the score level briefly but Hertz’s side missed a crucial tackle which led to another try for Ipswich.

Replacement prop Luke Stack incurred a yellow card late in the half and a rampant Ipswich capitalised.

Further tries followed and they had opened up a 29-10 half-time lead.

The second period continued in a similar vein to the first. Ignatians responded with a pushover score from Luke Ellis but their grip on the game was tenuous and the hosts ran in three more tries to remain top of the pile.

Ignatians had their moments. The visitors spurned the opportunity to make in-roads from two attacking lineouts deep within Ipswich territory.

On both occasions, Ignatians allowed the ball to be poached and the opportunities went begging.

Enfield far too often overcomplicated moves or turned the ball over as Ipswich counterattacked with a vengeance. Hertz’s men are not in action this weekend but they will look to bounce from their heavy defeat when they host Stowmarket in the league on February 8.