SOUTHEND Saxons are excited to be taking on local rivals Rochford Hundred this weekend, according to scrum half Harry Branch.

Ninth placed Saxons saw off Luton 43-12 on Saturday.

And Branch is now keen to build on that victory in their next London One North clash.

“Everyone’s excited to be going into the Rochford game,” said Branch.

“Its the final game before Christmas and the New Year so we are all looking forward to putting in a big shift to finish off 2018.”

The clash at Magnolia Road is expected to be watched by a bumper crowd.

And Branch feels that will add to the occasion.

“Everyone loves to play in the local matches amd there will be a really big, loud crowd to be playing in front of Saturday,” said the scrum half who returned to Southend from Westcliff in the summer.

“The final game of the year being derby day?

“It doesn’t get much better than that.”

Southend head to Magnolia Road having triumphed in six of their 13 games this season.

But Branch was pleased to add to the points tally by beating Luton in a game which saw Saxons bounce back to winning ways after two successive defeats.

“We had a slow start in the Luton game but it was an enjoyable victory in the end,” said Branch.

“It was great to have all the boys hitting their stride again and getting points on the board.

“It was also cracking to have both the Sexton brothers playing together and the better Sexton getting a debut try in the bank!”

And Branch is certain the victory will see Saxons heading into Saturday’s clash on a real high.

“It’s great to be back winning again,” said Branch.

“Everyone was looking very sharp in the second half.

“It showed that we’re able to stay composed even after the slow start we had in the first half and that was really good to see.

Southend will now be looking to continue in a similar vein when they head to Rochford Hundred this weekend.

The clash will also see them facing a number of former players with 11 of Rochford’s starting line-up having played at Southend earlier on in their careers.

Saturday’s clash kicks off at 2pm and sees the two teams play for the last time until early January.