Essex's spinners undid Sussex at Chelmsford as the Eagles finished their National League campaign with their tenth win.

With promotion already confirmed Essex signed off in style but the win came from an unlikely quarter.

Having managed only two with the bat, Mark Waugh performed with the ball taking three crucial wickets late on, as Sussex sought to sneak home.

In a low-scoring game, Essex's stand-in skipper Paul Grayson also claimed three wickets with his left-arm spin, as Sussex subsided from 99 for two, to 158 all out.

Murray Goodwin finished his season with a half-century and there was also a promising 36 from Nick Turk on his county debut, with the pair adding 76 for the third wicket.

However, when Turk was the sixth man out with the score on 122, the game was all but up with Waugh coming on to polish off the tail.

Earlier, Aftab Habib had ensured Essex had a competitive total with a top-scoring 53 in the Eagles' 189 all out.

A promising start unravelled quickly after Will Jefferson departed for 22, with John Stephenson and Mark Waugh following soon after.

Darren Robinson chipped in with 42 but it was Habib's 53 which resurrected Essex's hopes.

Together with Jon Dakin, Habib added 63 for the sixth wicket but despite Dakin remaining unbeaten on 40, the tail faded badly as Essex were bowled out with seven overs to spare.

Essex: D D J Robinson, W I Jefferson, J P Stephenson, M E Waugh, A Habib, A P Grayson (Capt), J M Dakin, J S Foster (Wkt), G R Napier, J D Middlebrook, J B Grant.

Sussex: R R Montgomerie (Capt), P A Cottey, M W Goodwin, N R K Turk, T R Ambrose (Wkt), R S C Martin-Jenkins, C D Hopkinson, M H Yardy, M J G Davis, P M Hutchison, B V Taylor.

Umpires: B Leadbeater and J F Steele