A superb victory for City today as they signed off 2023 at Hartsdown Park stretching their unbeaten home run to five matches.

In a tense, tight and sometimes fiery affair they took a two goal lead before being put under severe pressure by the visitors who grabbed a late goal back, but City stood tough and strong to hold on to the three points.

There was plenty of football being played straight from the first whistle, with both teams knocking the ball around and making runs into spaces but without a lot of progress towards either goal being made. In fact until City opened the scoring on six minutes, the only note I had was to do with the weather – dry but bitterly cold for the record, but Alfie Giles warmed things up when after some slight hesitancy in the Larkfield defence, he smashed a high bouncing ball on the volley into the top corner, giving visiting keeper James Savage no chance for 1-0.

In keeping with the way the game had started, there was again little to note by way of goalmouth action until ten minutes later when a City free-kick just evaded the head of Giles and was scooped up gratefully by Savage, before Harry Bradford broke down the right but could only find the side netting with a fierce shot as the angle tightened.

It took Larkfield around twenty minutes to get into their stride and start to put some pressure on the City goal as a couple of dangerous crosses needed dealing with, before City responded back but with Dan Haastrup’s big first time volley only finding the trees behind the stand!

There remained plenty of action though despite the dearth of direct chances, as the game continued to be played at a high and intense tempo. Larkfield’s Matt Day just about got a half-header in that Lee-Wharton easily saved, before the visitors spurned their first decent chance of the game so far as Day pulled the ball back to Clark Woodcock but with a clear sight of goal, leaning back he could only blast it high over the bar from just inside the box.

It hadn’t been Larkfield’s day so far and when Bradford took off down the left wing chasing a ball whipped down the sideline, they must have had hearts in mouths when Savage came charging out of his goal and completely missed the ball and absolutely took the striker out with his rash and poorly-timed challenge – after due consideration, he saw only a yellow card for his trouble, which was probably just about right! Shortly after, Rob Lawrence was also sent sprawling in mid-pitch and you got the sense that maybe there was some agitation and frustration spreading among the visitor’s ranks as the game clearly wasn’t going to plan for them at least.

With four minutes of the first half remaining, they finally forced City keeper Aaron Lee-Wharton into some meaningful action as he threw himself down to his right to make a smart block to deny Fraser Walker before Jack Sammoutis fired the ball into the City net only to see the offside flag long since raised. As the game wound down towards the break and with five extra minutes played, the challenges continued to go in, the pace of the game never waned and there was maybe a bit of an edge creeping into proceedings, but no matter that for City as they were still in front at one-nil when the half did finally end!

It was a completely different Larkfield that reappeared for the second-half though as they sought to get themselves back into the game and they started to put City under some severe and sustained pressure. Luke Russell stubbed a shot that Lee-Wharton easily saved, while Keiron McCann saw his firm effort deflect off his own man and land kindly for the City keeper to gather.

Lee-Wharton was then quick to block a shot from Russell but Larkfield followed that up with a succession of corners, that saw City fighting hard to repel and close down. In fact from one of these, Haastrup counter-attacked at speed, but having done well to outpace a defender, he could only fire well wide.

Meanwhile, McCann shot off target for Larkfield and then saw a long distance effort well blocked, as the visitors were virtually encamped in and around the City box desperately trying to find a way through. Another series of corners peppered the City area, but still they stood firm and strong dealing with everything Larkfield could throw at them. They may have had a lucky escape though when Larkfield’s strong appeals for a handball penalty were swiftly waved away by the referee, for me the ball struck the arm but it was at fairly close range and the arm was down by the side so… – but who knows nowadays!!

For all the pressure they were under, City still had their moments and but for a superb blocking tackle by Nathan Daly that denied Bradford, City could have increased their lead. Meanwhile, Kwasi Amoah hit a shot on the run well wide of the City goal, before Walker weaved his way deep into the box but was denied by Lee-Wharton who stood up big and strong to block the shot.

On seventy-five minutes came Larkfield’s moment as an aerial ball dropped nicely over the shoulder of Day inside the box, but with all the goal to aim at, the league’s leading scorer somehow managed to crash it over the crossbar!

Goals obviously win matches, but defences and keepers can win them too and when just two minutes later Woodcock let fly from twenty yards, the ball was just dipping in under the bar before Lee-Wharton dived and finger-tipped it over the bar, a superb save –  easilly worth a goal to City and it kept them with their slender lead still intact.

To emphasise just how important that save was, just a minute later, a Lawrence free-kick was met by Bradford’s leap and his cushioned header just evaded the diving grasp of Savage’s low dive and nestled in the goal for 2-0 to City and in an instant they had gone from almost being pegged back to in fact, doubling their lead!

With just nine minutes left to play and a two goal advantage, it was City’s game to hold now surely. Tyler Ibe and Sammoutis both had chances for Larkfield, before City nearly scored a third when Harry Maher saw his effort pawed away by Savage only to find Liam Cormack charging in but he could only hurriedly, deflect the ball back in but off the post!

Now with just three minutes of the ninety to play, Larkfield finally got a foothold back into the game when Sammoutis struck from around twenty yards, the ball flying into the side of the goal for 2-1.

What followed was frantic and frenetic as Larkfield threw everything (including the kitchen sink!) at City trying to find an unlikely equaliser and when Lawrence found himself sin-binned – reducing City to ten men likley for the rest of the game, nerves were really jangling as the game moved into what turned out to be eleven minutes of stoppage time. Lee-Wharton saved well from Joe Bingham, while a stooping header from Daly went wide. The pressure was immense and although substitute Sam Lawford saw an effort saved by Savage, as time dragged on, it was beginning to feel almost inevitable that Larkfield would score again.

The fact that they didn’t was testament to an industrious, rearguard at times, super performance by the whole team but still in those final moments there was great relief when Larkfield wasted two very late corners, including one that was swung into the near post by Walker that Lee-Wharton calmly and safely pouched – nothing to see here!!

Finally, eventually and thankfully, the referee decided time was up and City had chiselled out a well-deserved and really hard-earned win that was polished off in attack but hammered out at the back and it was no surprise when one of the defenders – Louie Procopi, was named the Tiger Fire & Security sponsored Man-of-the-Match.

Final score: Canterbury City 2 Larkfield & New Hythe 1

City: Aaron Lee-Wharton, Jake McCarthy, Nico Cotton (Ben Binder), Danny Keyte, Louie Procopi, Alfie Giles, Harry Maher (Dan Watson), Rob Lawrence, Dan Haastrup (Sam Lawford), Harry Bradford (Darren Cooper), Monty Saunders (Liam Cormack)