Town outmuscled by physical Folly

Forced to play with a patched-up XI due to unavailability, Kenilworth actually started the brighter of the two sides and took a second-minute lead when Matty Lendon controlled neatly before shooting home inside the six-yard box.

Town continued to hold the upper hand for the next 25 minutes and were denied a second by a combination of poor finishing and solid defending.

Two goals inside five minutes from the home side then altered the complexion of the game, with Folly Lane taking advantage of sloppy defending to go in at the break with the advantage.

The hosts gained a two-goal cushion immediately after the restart when Town failed to deal with a cross and, as Kenilworth tired in the closing stages, added two more.

While he felt the scoreline was harsh on his side, Town boss Barry Shearsby said the gulf in experience was clearly evident.

“It was a bit of a mismatch, really,” admitted Shearsby.

“We had three cry off on the morning of the game which didn’t help and ended up playing with a very young team who really got outmuscled in the end.

“I can’t knock the lads for the effort that they put in, we simply weren’t strong enough on the day.

“But I was encouraged with the effort the team put in and the way they stuck together when things weren’t going well, especially the young lads.

“It showed we have team spirit and we will use that to build for Saturday when we are back to league action (at home to Barton United).”

 Kenilworth Town Ladies maintained their excellent form with an 11-0 cup demolition of Brinklow.

Brinklow had no answer to Kenilworth’s pace and movement and found themselves trailing 6-0 at the break, with Alex Shilton (2), Bonnie Mountford (2), Kim Dougherty and Becky Jones, all notching.

Mountford and Shilton went on to complete their hat-tricks after the break, with Lucy Stevenson (2) and Kat Ellis completing the rout.