A three-try blitz in the opening nine minutes helped Alton to maintain their unbeaten start in Hampshire League 1 with a comprehensive win over New Milton at a soggy Anstey Park.

It's now 73 points scored and none conceded for Luke Parratt's men.

Alton's thunderous open salvo left them 21 points to the good, effectively sealing the win before the last of the lunch guests had made it to pitchside.

Indeed, Alton's promising young side are unlikely to produce a better opening ten minutes in this, or any other, season. It was that good.

However, it was the brisk efficiency of the build-up play, rather than the tries themselves, that really caught the eye.

Above all, Alton had pace, pace and more pace: they were too quick in thought and deed for New Milton and, as the game unfolded, they were even a little too quick for themselves on occasions.

Straight from the kick-off, Alton caught their visitors cold with a series of quick rucks, and they immediately threw the greasy ball wide. Indeed, New Milton had not even touched the ball when centre Jason Rees ghosted in for a try down the left-hand blindside after nine phases and just 160 seconds of play.

Five minutes later, another series of attacking rucks was rewarded when fly-half Steve Ott bullocked his way over from close range. Then, before the ten-minute mark had been reached, flanker Andrew Davies notched the third - and best - try when he took an inside pass from wing Dan Forsyth after another sustained attack turned the New Milton defence inside out and back to front. Ott converted all three. It was heady stuff.

When shell-shocked New Milton did eventually secure some ball, the door was firmly slammed shut by an aggressive Alton defensive line. The New Foresters' best moments usually came when their stylish full-back Bryn Darbyshire got his hands on the ball, but with the scrummage in retreat and the line-out malfunctioning, the visitors had little chance to shine going forward.

That New Milton did not suffer a real mauling was due to a monumental defensive effort and Alton's less-than-precise finishing after the snap, crackle and pop of the first ten minutes.

However, Ott added his second try on 38 minutes after a half-break and neat off-load out of the tackle by the omnipresent Davies. Ott, who has brought real authority and resourcefulness to the number ten slot, added the conversion to an earlier penalty.

At 31-0 to the good, with forwards and backs running penetrating lines everywhere, the half-time interval was almost a source of annoyance to Alton.

Subsequently, the early momentum was lost and the post-interval exchanges were much scrappier. Prop James Gay's 58th-minute try from a rolling maul was the only score in an often dour second-half war of attrition.

Half-chances came and went, notably a blistering 60-yard break from man of the match Davies that warranted a try, and Alton continued to find plenty of space on the flanks, but the killer pass proved elusive.

The New Milton tackling remained a marvel to behold but, in contrast to their hosts, they were laboured and unimaginative in attack, hitting tackles rather than spaces.

The outstanding Darbyshire, the fulcrum of most of the visitors' attacks, nearly added a late consolation with a clever chip-and-chase that Forsyth did well to cover and number eight Julian Whittle made some charging runs but it was plain sailing for the Red Bellies, who have now put together consecutive league clean sheets.

So Alton continue their renaissance and return to league action on 14 October when they face one of their toughest assignments, against fellow relegatees Trojans at Stoneham Lane. The first fifteen have a bye in the first round of the EDF Energy Junior Vase but are likely to line up a friendly instead.

Alton: B Oliphant; B Wallace (D Egan 60), J Rees, S Johns, D Forsyth; S Ott, J Grace; S Watts, L Parratt (c), J Gay (J Rowe 73); R White, M Greenhalgh; S Sorby, A Davies, S Jones (S Doel 72).

Tries: Ott (7, 38), Davies (7), Rees (2), Gay (58). Conversions: Ott (5). Penalty: Ott

New Milton and District: B Darbyshire; S Broomfield, M Lambert, D Oliver, D Bateman; W Lewis, B Bradley-Watson; G Brooks, A George, J Mallett (c); N Hanmer, A McConnachie,; M Colein, S Bew, J Whittle.