MALVERN cruised to a 36-5 victory over Walsall in a friendly hastily arranged after Whitchurch refused to play in a North Midlands Cup semi-final.

It only took three minutes for the first catch-and-drive move to give Shaun Lancett a try and Ryan Watkins added the conversion.

They got their second when George Roberts ran in after the ball had been moved along the line. Walsall grabbed a try but it wasn't long before Chris Hooper burst through the middle to score a try which Watkins converted.

In the second-half, Richard Fleming took the ball on and put in a delicate chip to secure a score and Watkins collected the extras.

The forwards put in a superb driving maul for Nick Tisdale to score the first of his two tries.

Malvern director of rugby David Robins said: "The Walsall coach told me our pack was the equal of many in Midlands One.

"I was pleased and extremely grateful that they sent almost their full team at such short notice."