A frustrating and bitterly disappointing afternoon for City as they failed to take advantage of being given a second bite of the Presidents Cup cherry at Borden.

After the first game had been voided by the League due to extra-time having been wrongly played, City returned to the Playstool with another chance to possibly progress in the competition but a largely ineffective and insipid performance saw then comprehensively beaten by Borden who deservedly move into the next round.

A game of two halves saw Borden dominate the first with the stiff breeze behind them and then dominate the second playing into it! They were by far the major attacking force on the day with a plethora of corners and missile-like long throws continually threatening the City goal and but for some poor finishing from the hosts, the winning margin should well have been even greater.

An optimistic long range effort from Jake Lemar that barely troubled home keeper Lewis Mitchell was City’s only tangible effort on goal in the first quarter of the game, while Borden were consistently troubling the visitors from all sides and all angles. A wide right free-kick was well claimed by young City keeper Austin Tearle but the enormous long throws from Reiss Crimmen very quickly laid down a marker with Fred Carroll heading one over the bar early on. Ross Pagett then rolled an effort wide of the City goal before Liam Irvine’s cross from the right caught in the wind and had to be hurriedly pushed over his own bar by Tearle.

A quick long throw then almost caught City out – releasing Irvine to charge through but he could only volley wide when well placed. Another Borden free-kick – near the corner flag this time, was then fizzed low across the City box but cleared out for a corner from which they conceded the first goal. The ball was played short and then sent in high seeming to hang in the air before Tom Bullock rose at the far post to nod it home – not the cleanest header, but he still got enough on it to divert it in off the inside of the post for 0-1.

City tried to respond when a Jacob Couzens free-kick was launched in and headed down by Harley White but Daniel Ikem was only able to force the loose ball wide with defenders and the keeper all in very close attendance.

The next ten minutes or so just saw a continual barrage of long-throws and corners from the hosts with Kai Parkinson striking one over the bar when he probably should have scored, Tearle forced to push another away at full stretch and a third seeing a Jack Sayer header glanced narrowly wide. Irvine also saw a shot deflected out while at the other end, a rare City effort saw Lemar’s shot from around twenty-five yards hit firmly enough but always arrowing just past the angle.

It was mainly attack v defence though as Alfie Welling slid an effort right across the face of the City goal and Crimmen saw his expansive volley take a deflection out just as he struck it. Four further corners came and went for the hosts before on thirty-eight minutes City had a great chance to equalise when Ikem cleverly headed a bouncing ball past his marker and strode into the Borden box clean through but dallied too long and was probably too late to shoot and it allowed the defender time to battle back and deflect the effort away from goal.

City could have done with that goal, because just three minutes later, Borden doubled their lead. Another Crimmen long throw was hurled into the box and after what can be best described as a bit of a scramble – with several players from both sides getting a piece of the ball, Parkinson got the final and key touch forcing it home from close range for 0-2.

Borden unsurprisingly ended the half still on the attack when Pagett broke clear of the City defence but fired wide of the far post on the run leaving City two down at the break and looking a world away from pulling anything back!

Five half-time substitutions was understandable given what the first-half had seen, but even that failed to provide any sort of spark or inspiration to mount a comeback. Straightaway another Crimmen missile almost helped create a third goal for the hosts and although Tearle did well to initially punch it to safety, the ball was recycled from the right and swept over towards goal where it unbelievably evaded several players from either side before somehow bouncing on and past the far post to safety – how that wasn’t deflected into the net was anybody’s guess!

City skipper Aaron James then hit a long effort well wide, but almost immediately Borden should have scored again when a clever flick from Irvine sent Pagett though and with the goal and Tearle at his mercy, he could only volley wastefully wide.

Tearle then had a straightforward save to deny Bailey Catherick before a shopping list of Borden dead-ball situations caused further angst and anxiety at the back for City. A Pagett shot was deflected out, while a Crimmen long-throw was somehow scrambled clear before a free-kick was well dealt with by Tearle as Sayer desperately tried to force the ball home at the foot of the near post. The keeper then safely plucked Catherick’s shot out of the air before doing well to paw another corner away under extreme pressure.

A brief respite for City saw Oscar Weight’s cross struck wide by David Olaiya but it really proved just to be a drop in the ocean with a tidal wave of Borden attacks all around them and it wasn’t long before the hosts bagged their third when a rapid break down the left saw a perfectly weighted pass played inside which Josh Arnold took in his stride before drilling it low and past the advancing Tearle – with some aplomb, to make the score 0-3.

Borden were in complete control now – if they hadn’t been already and City just couldn’t conjure up any sort of influence on the game. Peter Payne fired over for Borden when he should have scored number four before Crimmen had a shot blocked. If Payne should have scored just before, only he will know how he managed to then miss an even better chance shortly after when he diverted Irvine’s inch perfect pass the wrong side of the upright from around five yards out and, from right in front of an open goal!

Borden keeper Mitchell had very little to do all afternoon and when City did get a look at his goal – it was only a forlorn look as Olaiya’s tame effort from the edge of the box trundled wide. City’s keeper however was virtually putting in an over-time shift as City’s goal was continually under fire. He rushed out to dispossess Payne who was clean through before seeing Jack Perry’s shot blocked and another deflected away.

All the traffic was only moving in one direction and Payne finally made up for his earlier misses when on eighty-four minutes, he drove purposely through the gears – and the City defence, before  getting clean through and slotting clinically past the advancing Tearle for 0-4.

The closing moments were all also played out at the City end as Welling screwed a shot well wide, Tearle dispossessed Arnold when clean through ten yards out before he then twice had to deal with high balls lofted into the City box before the referee finally called a halt to proceedings, it wasn’t quite a TKO in boxing parlance, but probably wasn’t far off it!

It’s a bit early for games to be six pointers but City are at home to Boca Juniors next week in the league – who are one place above them currently, and then return to the Playstool in a fortnight to take on Borden again who are one place below and clearly they will need to find something from somewhere to reverse this current run of five fairly by and large hefty defeats!!

Final score: Canterbury City 0 Borden Village 4