Alresford Town 0 AFC Portchester 5: THIS five-goal defeat, coupled with Fawley’s win over Newport, means that Alresford are all but mathematically certain of a bottom two finish at the end of the season.

Ten points behind the club immediately above them and with only four games left to play, the Magpies would need at least three wins and a draw from their last four and to hope that Fawley fail to win again – and that’s a forlorn hope.

The Magpies started brightly against Portchester, but once the visitors had flexed their muscles and established superiority in the middle of the field there could only be one outcome. Portchester nearly opened the scoring in the ninth minute, when home keeper John Howard’s punch from a corner was heading towards his own net, but Ben Stanbrook rescued his side with a clearance off the line.

But the reprieve was brief. Good build-up play down the centre on 18 minutes led to Miles Everett receiving the ball on the right-hand corner of the penalty area. He fired a precise low shot past J Howard and in at the far post.

Louis Castles was causing the hosts problems with his breaks down the right. And he set up the second goal on 41 minutes with a penetrating cross that Curt Robbins headed home from virtually under the crossbar.

A minute before the break Ashley Howes’ flighted header extended Portchester’s lead to three, and the result was all but done and dusted.

In the second half Portchester gave an exemplary demonstration of how to close a game out. The Magpies had withdrawn striker Ryan Davis at the break. His replacement, centre-back Iain Calder, soon made his presence felt with a crunching tackle on Joe Bye, but Bye gained revenge in the best possible way by drilling the resulting free kick past J Howard and into the net.

Alresford’s plight deepened as Brian Howard limped off with an injury. And on 62 minutes Everett completed the away team’s nap hand by cutting in from the left and firing in off the underside of the crossbar.

Alresford are used to finishing matches with ten men. But on this occasion there was no foul play involved, midfielder Dan Thorogood succumbing to a pulled hamstring on 83 minutes with all three subs already on.

All credit to Portchester for turning on a thoroughly professional performance in a game that can’t have meant a great deal to them. For Alresford, though, it’s back to the drawing board once again. And that drawing board is likely to be in Division 1.