Canterbury Rugby Club head coach Danny Vaughan says only hard work on the field for the rest of the season will secure National 2 South survival, ahead of Saturday’s trip to Worthing.

The City club recorded their eighth consecutive defeat last Saturday with a surprise 24-19 loss against basement side Newbury Blues, who had lost all of their previous games this season.

The result prompted Vaughan to host a team meeting on Tuesday and he remains confident his side can end their winless run and avoid relegation following the debrief.

He said: "Last week was a disappointing result but we have just got to work hard now to get through this rough patch.

"Teams in all sports go through tough times and we have got to see it out.

"We haven’t been playing well and are where we are in the table but we are a much better side than that.

"Relegation is a concern and we have to keep looking over our shoulders at the moment but they are not must-win games yet.

"I think it’s been a combination of low confidence and unavailablities but we cannot make excuses."