Winger Charlie Walker reckons back-to-back Heineken Cup wins have put Harlequins in a strong position to challenge for silverware this term.

The 20-year-old, who finished last season playing National Division One rugby at Esher, rounded off a sweeping first-half move to set Quins on their way to a 17-3 triumph over big spending Racing Metro at the Stoop on Sunday.

The result, the club’s fifth successive win in all competitions, kept alive hopes of reaching the knock-out stages of the competition after last week’s 32-8 triumph in Paris.

The games saw the first appearances of the season for new lock Nick Kennedy as the club’s injury crisis eases heading in to the new year.

And Walker reckoned back-to-back wins over the Frenchmen – and the host of injuries the club have suffered this term – had only increased his side’s chances of claiming silverware this term.

“Our trips to France always seem to bring the squad closer together. We were much tighter after the Clermont Auvergne defeat and we’re closer still now.

“It doesn’t matter where we play, we are always looking to put our game on the park.

“We’ve shown over the past two weeks that we are just getting better and better.”

Walker crossed to add to three Nick Evans penalties as Quins raced into a 14-0 half-time lead on Sunday, to make light of the gulf in financial resources available to the two teams.

Racing fielded four British & Irish Lions in their expensively assembled line-up, but were unable to find a way back in the second half as Ben Botica cancelled out fly half Jonny Sexton’s penalty for the visitors.

Quins return to Premiership action this  afternoon [Saturday] with a trip to Bath.

And Walker is taking nothing for granted.

“It is nice to be playing week in week out, and trying to keep my place in the first team squad, which is hard with the competition,” he added.

“Momentum is really coming back with us.

“At the start of the season it wasn’t great, but we have been creating opportunities and we are being more clinical now.”