Andy Pratt says Canterbury Rugby Club face a “massive challenge” if they are to make it four-straight wins in National 2 South when they visit second-bottom Shelford on Saturday.

The city club recorded their third consecutive win with a 28-23 bonus point victory against Redruth in a dramatic game at Merton Lane on Saturday, during which they had to play for more than 50 minutes a man short after losing centre Ricky Mackintosh to a red card.

The win took them 10 points clear of the bottom-three with games against the bottom-two to come the next two Saturdays.

Head coach Pratt said: “I was pleased with the win, especially at the end of a week with a few ups and downs. We were hoping to have Dan Smart back but he has been told he needs another six or eight weeks for his arm to heal.

“We also lost George Micans during the game and we’re waiting on a scan to see how long he will be out and, of course, there was Ricky Mackintosh’s red card.

“Shelford is going to be a massive challenge, they are hard to beat and we have a lot of respect for them. There are a lot of similarities between the two clubs.

“We’ve never won there and they will be desperate for a win, even more so against us as they think they will be able to close the gap we have built.”

Injury rules out No.8 Micans, who underwent a scan on a knee injury this week and centre Mackintosh, who has been handed a one-week ban for his red card against Redruth.
(Thursday) training session.