BOSS Graham Kemp couldn’t hide his pride as Christchurch continued to fly the Wessex League flag in the FA Vase.

With the silverware on display at Hurn Bridge prior to kick-off, Priory quickly turned the tie into one-way traffic as Marc Burrows’s first-half strike put Kemp’s side on their way.

And once Burrows had added his second just two minutes into the second half, the tie was all over as a contest – even before Russell Cook capped a fine individual showcase with Priory’s third 15 minutes from time.

Kemp said: “We played very well. We put them under pressure more or less from the first minute and apart from probably 15 minutes towards the end of the first half, I didn’t think the result was in any doubt.

“Marc and Russell had great games again, but the back four and Stewart Kearn were excellent. Kearnsy was a real calming influence when they put the ball in the box. He just dealt with everything, the back four kept them 30 yards from goal and didn’t give them a sniff and the front two were really ruthless up front.

“To be fair, I think New Milton can play a lot better. I chatted to their manager afterwards and from his point of view I think the disappointing thing will be that they didn’t really give it a go on the day.

“But credit to our lads. We worked hard and we didn’t let them play.”

Burrows went closest for Priory in a cagey opening 10 minutes when he fired straight at Tom Clifton-Moore after latching on to James Burden’s incisive cross.

Cook then had a glorious chance to open the scoring moments later but blasted wide of Clifton-Moore’s goal.

But it didn’t take long for Priory to take the lead when Burrows flicked a header just inside the far post on 16 minutes, after Dan Crutchley had flicked on Chris Dillon’s deadly long throw.

Robbie Woolner went close to levelling matters for Linnets just before the break when his fizzing drive flew just over Stewart Kearn’s crossbar.

But just two minutes after the restart, Linnets found themselves 2-0 down when Burrows picked up Mark Smith’s through ball and delicately lifted the ball over the advancing Clifton-Moore.

Then, with 15 minutes remaining, Cook completed the job with aplomb after Michael Green’s searing run and cross from the left flank found the young frontman in space inside the Linnets box.

Looking ahead to today’s fourth-round draw, Kemp added: “We’d like a home tie, although the players may like a trip to get away for the weekend. But we’ll just take what comes at this stage.

“The club is getting great at organising home ties and Saturday was a great day for the club with the FA coming down with the Vase and a decent sized crowd.

“It’s not often you hear that Christchurch are flying the flag for the area, what with Poppies of the past and Wimborne and Poole, so it’s nice for the club to get a little bit of press coverage and some recognition.”

Linnets boss Andy Bye said: “I think the better team won on the day. They imposed themselves on us quickly and just didn’t allow us to get going.

“You have to give them the credit and they had the edge because they got tuned into the game very quickly.”

Christchurch: Kearn, Dand, Taylor, Crutchley, Dillon, Wiltshire (Keates, 60), Smith, Burden, Cook (Osborne, 75), Burrows, Green (Rideout, 80). Unused subs: Longman, Manning, Collins (g/k).

New Milton Town: Clifton-Moore, Woods, Clarke, Grace, Pidgley, Burt, Holland, Kenna, Cox (Sampays, 70), Woolner, Allen. Unused subs: Ewen, R Chengadu, Jones (g/k).