Raiders captain is taking one game at a time in bid for promotion

Raiders sit third in National League Division 2 South after 10 wins and two defeats from their 12 league games so far, three points behind the top two, Henley and Hartpury College, who meet each other this weekend.

Miles said: “The season is going well. We made a few additions to our squad over the summer, so have more strength in depth.

“We had a couple of slip-ups against Chinnor and Shelford as we didn’t hit our greatest form at the start of the season.

“But I think the Henley game (49-5 win) was a turning point. That was an epic match for us and was probably the best team performance I’ve ever been involved in.

“A lot of people came to the match and expected it to be close but that Henley would win.

“The match was marred by Matt McLean’s serious injury but we put in a fantastic performance and it showed to everyone that Henley are beatable. They are a good side and played quite well in that game but our defence shut them down and we were clinical in attack.

“That was the catalyst for us and we then beat Southend and then Clifton in difficult conditions.

“We’ve just got to take every game as it comes now and try to get the win and the bonus point in every game.

“Not one game will be easy as this is a very competitive league, so we have to treat every game as a cup final.”

Miles believes that the National League has benefitted from the loaning of players from Premiership sides.

He said: “In the last three or four years, Premiership sides have loaned more players out to Championship and National League sides.

“It’s a good way to blood youngsters as this is a good standard. When I was in the Premiership a few years ago, I’d have loved to go out on loan to get regular games.

“We’ve had the likes of Jordan Burns, Harry Sloan and Luke Peters this season and the professional approach that they bring helps everyone else.”

Raiders travel to Taunton in the league on Saturday.