Video: Farmy Army take over the East End for Ryan Walsh

Ryan Walsh paid tribute to the 'Farmy Army' after making the perfect start to his 2016 campaign.

The Cromer boxer made a stunning first defence of his British featherweight title with a fifth-round stoppage over Scot Darren Traynor.

It was a performance high on quality and excitement in front of another packed house at the iconic home of British boxing, York Hall, in the heart of London's East End.

And once again, hundreds of fans who travelled south for the night ensured Walsh's every punch was greeted with a crescendo of noise.

'I'd like to thank my loyal fans for turning out as they always do to support me and I give them what they want; excitement,' said the 29-year-old, who became the first man to beat Traynor in a dozen outings.

'My dream is to win this beautiful Lonsdale belt outright and this was the first of three defences, I can't wait for the next one.'

Walsh was headlining the first show of the year from promoter Frank Warrren, and sent a clear message to his rivals that the British belt won't be leaving north Norfolk in a hurry.

'It's amazing to start the year off with a big win and a big performance,' Walsh added. 'Darren was a tough opponent and put up a good fight for the first few rounds until my accuracy and power came through and I found myself landing at will and I knew then it was only a matter of time before I nailed him.

'In the fifth round I could see that I was hurting him and then I landed a beautiful combination starting with the right hand and three left hooks and a final right hand to send him crashing through the ropes and I knew he wasn't going to be getting up, thankfully the ref called it off.'