Canterbury rugby players and staff were involved in a dramatic motorway crash rescue on Saturday evening.

It happened on the M26 as the team was returning from the league game at Henley and a car hit the central barriers served across the carriageways trapping two people inside.

The car ended up on its side in the slow lane of the motorway. Team physiotherapist Kevin Gee and players Tom Best, who is a fireman, and Royce Cadman went to the rescue.

Together with another off-duty fireman who had stopped to help they succesfully worked at freeing a man and a woman from the badly damaged vehicle.

Team Manager Andy Rogers said: “It was a harrowing scene and freeing the occupants from the car took some doing as the car was badly compressed at the front end.

“After a lot of pushing, pulling and gentle persuasion the first of the occupants emerged – a man with chest pains but thankfully alive.”

“Royce Cadman and Fireman Best were then up on the side of car easing open the driver’s door so that Kevin Gee could gently ease the lady free.”

“Both were bruised and in shock and were take on to the team coach to keep warm while they waited for the police and ambulance service.”

” The occupants were lucky to get out relatively unscathed as it was a dangerous situation for the rescuers. It was dark, our lads were working in the slow lane of the motorway with traffic still passing. There was steam coming from what was left of the engine bay and there seemed to me a very real risk of the car catching alight.”

“The three of them did us proud.”