Written by Gareth Davies/Cornwall RLFC.

Head coach Neil Kelly is predicting another tough afternoon at the office for his Cornwall side as they face West Wales Raiders at the Mem – 3pm.

Kelly, who celebrated his 60th birthday earlier this week, says the Raiders 'are a dangerous side' despite their position at the foot of the Betfred League 1 standings.

Like Cornwall, the Raiders will be eyeing this fixture as a potential first win of 2022 but Kelly warned that if his side's performance is error-strewn, they will be punished by their Llanelli-based visitors. 

"Being in and around our group this week the players have been very respectful of the opposition we are going to be meeting," Kelly told cornwallrlfc.co.uk. "(West Wales Raiders) are two or three years ahead of us in this division and they have some good players.

"With that in mind, if we make the same errors we did against Hunslet then West Wales will score tries because they are a dangerous side. However, we feel that if we get things right and better than in previous weeks, then there is the potential for our first win.

He added: "West Wales are not daft and they will be watching the videos this week seeing that we have quality in our side. We also have one or two ingredients missing like any side would given our journey so far, but it's up to us to add those ingredients on a weekly basis.

"If all those ingredients are in the mixing bowl and they are right then we will be really competitive. We must get everything right for 80 minutes and if we do that against West Wales, which I would very much look forward to, then it could lead to a positive result."

With the Choughs set to roared on by yer another bumper home attendance, Kelly praised the support received by Cornwall supporters so far this season and says it's 'hugely encouraging'. 

"Our supporters are realistic and educated," he said. "They have been really supportive and understand we are a development side. 

"I think some of our results this season have been really encouraging and exactly what I wanted. In some areas, our performances have exceeded expectations, in others they haven't.

"I'm not coaching this side to apologise for results over the last four or five weeks as I think we have played good sides and acquitted ourselves really well.

"On some occasions, the result hasn't reflected the game but the result is still the result and our supporters are sticking by us which is hugely encouraging.

"Hopefully, we get everything 100 percent right this weekend and the fans can be rewarded."

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