Enfield Ignatians returned to winning ways on the road by picking up a comfortable 22-5 win over Basildon on Saturday.

The Blue and Golds were beaten 22-0 at Diss in their last away fixture but bounced back in fine style in Essex.

Dominant in all areas, Ignatians backed Basildon into a corner from which there was no escape, and feasting off a glut of good possession, the visitors fashioned two quality first-half tries from Dave Gear and man-of-the-match Jordan Wilson.

An excellent break from centre Keir Bonnar set up the first try, and a couple of strong carries from Luke Ellis and Liam Horn led to the Wilson score. The latter, orchestrating play at fly-half, also added a conversion as the Ignatians sealed a 12-0 half-time lead.

Ignatians' physicality continued to hurt Basildon and, after the home side were penalised for dragging down the maul, the Blue and Golds successfully farmed the catch and drive from the line out to work over captain Ellis.

Despite the poor conditions, both sides showed a willingness to run the ball, and with Basildon on the attack close to the Ignatians' 22, the Essex side fatally spilled the ball forward.

Reacting rapidly to the opposition mistake, Ignatians not only caught the ball in double-quick time, but also set in motion a daring counter-attack from deep, and the ball travelled through half a dozen hands before fullback Jack Wilson finished off.

Having secured the bonus point, Ignatians took their foot off the gas; the penalty count started to mount and Basildon made the use of the momentum to snatch a late consolation score.

Coach Emile Hertz commented: "I'm happy with the result as the first team had never won here before since I've been in charge, although I was a little disappointed that we conceded a try as we had aimed to kept our line in tact.

"Our aim was to score four tries, and secure the bonus point, which we did. Ideally, we should have kicked-on and scored a couple more tries, but I must admit that the very muddy conditions didn't help.

"Game management is one of our key mantras and it's all about knowing when to kick and when to pass. In stages, I feel that we getting it right and it's going to plan, but, in others, we're losing the plot and mucking about with the ball."

He continued: "The main thing, from our point of view, is that we keep it basic and simple and do what's working for us.

"However, I'm pleased with the variations in our play. We weren't predictable and there was some nice interplay between backs and forwards."

Ignatians entertain the league leaders Rochford Hundred at Donkey Lane on Saturday.