Canterbury Hockey Club captain Tom Richford has set his sights on toppling title-chasing East Grinstead and pulling of an ‘almost comical’ escape from national top-flight relegation.

With two games remaining in NOW: Pensions Premier Division the city club remain alive, having sat on the brink of relegation last month after winning just one of their opening 13 games.

Three straight wins, including Saturday’s 2-1 success against Brooklands MU and the 9-1 romp against Reading at Polo Farm on Sunday, kept alive their chances of pulling off a great escape, and even finishing above second-bottom, which carries with it the prospect of a relegation play-off against a team from the division below.

The city club can still catch sixth-placed Cannock, who are five points clear, seventh-placed Brooklands, four points ahead, and eighth-placed Hampstead, three infront but with a game in hand.

Rock-bottom Southgate are level on points and goal difference, but behind on goals scored, with three games to play, including facing Hampstead aswell as a final day trip to Canterbury.

Ahead of Sunday’s visit of East Grinstead (12.45pm), skipper Richford admitted: “There is every possibility that we might actually avoid the play-off altogether, and if we can do that it would be almost comical given the season we have had.”

He added: “We said a couple of weeks ago that we’d need to win three of our last four games, but with the way we’re playing, and the confidence we have, there is no reason why we couldn’t beat East Grinstead.

“Southgate have still got to play Cannock, and have a rearranged game against Hampstead, aswell as us. We are confident that if we win our last two games we will avoid even having to play the play-off game.”

Richford added: “The key has always been to keep believing. It’s been tough at times this season, I have to admit, maintaining that belief has not always been easy.

“But we have worked hard and we’ve got a nice team atmosphere.

“Earlier in the season we were giving teams a hard game, and putting them under pressure, but without actually converting our opportunities. So as much as we might have pressed them, all the while we weren’t scoring, they were never in too much trouble against us.

“Hopefully all that is behind us and we can look forward with confidence.”