A CONSULTANT'S report into the location of a planned base for Canterbury City Football Club was fiercely contested on Monday.

Members of the public, opposition councillors and a spokesman for the South Canterbury Residents Association criticised its conclusion that the ground, including community pitches, should be based at Ridlands Farm, off South Canterbury Road at a meeting of city councillors.

Campaigners also criticised the lack of public consultation and slammed the consultants, brought in by Canterbury City Council, for ignoring other potential sites for the project to give the club a permanent home.

Opponents were also concerned about possible traffic problems because the land is so close to Kent and Canterbury Hospital.

Gary Mclnally, on behalf the South Canterbury Residents association, said: "We continue to sympathise with the plight of Canterbury Football Club but we do not think the idea of a football hub in South Canterbury is viable. If we had been engaged at an earlier time we could have provided valuable feedback."

South Canterbury resident Dick Vane-Wright also expressed his concern at the lack of public consultation.

He said: "I would like register my deep distaste at the undemocratic nature of the process."

Lid Dem Cllr Nick Eden-Green said the report had not properly taken into account which communities in Canterbury would benefit from a football ground. He told the meeting that the community gardens on Sturry Road would be a better site because it could provide more facilities for nearby council estates.

He said: "Social inclusion doesn't feature anywhere in the report. It is a complete shambles. Deprivation issues are much more prominent in that area."

Councillors asked officials to review the Sturry Road site, rejected because it is leased to a charitable trust. Council bosses also promised more consultation about the Ridlands Farm proposal.