Tauranga City United's promotion hopes hang by a thread this weekend despite a 6-0 home victory over bottom-of-the-table Ngaruawahia on Saturday afternoon.

Goals from Jerahl Hughes, Nathan Farey, Dean Styles, substitute Strauss Boom and a brace from Jordan Culpepper sealed the win for Duncan Lowry's men – but still left them with a mountain to climb in their chase for a top-two finish.

Tauranga City United are the still in the hunt for promotion after Saturday's resounding win. Photos: Chris Callinan.

The Blues now lie third in the table, some three points behind second-placed North Shore but with a game in hand.

The Aucklanders, however, are four goals better off than the Bay of Plenty outfit – something United will have to overcome against Mangere next weekend if they're to pinch second spot.

Saturday's clash with Ngaruawahia was one of the most one-sided affairs of the campaign, and few in the Links Avenue crowd would have been surprised if Tauranga had reached double figures.

The already-relegated visitors struggled to cope with United from the first whistle, and fell behind as early as the third minute when Culpepper shrugged off his marker before toe-poking the ball into the bottom corner.

With ten minutes on the clock it was 2-0 when man-of-the-match Hughes burst down the right wing before being crudely upended inside the box.

The Northern League First Division's top scorer picked himself up and sent Zabir Azizi the wrong way from the penalty spot to notch his 19th goal of the season in front of the Mount Maunganui faithful.

Quite how the score stayed that way until half-time remains a mystery, as the home side wasted a string of opportunities to extend their lead and chase down North Shore's goal difference.

Returning striker Colm Kenny fired over with the goal gaping on 24 minutes after an error from Azizi, but the keeper made amends moments later with a magnificent finger tip save to deny the Irish striker.

Culpepper then did well to find the number nine inside the six-yard box soon after the half-hour mark, but a place on the scoresheet continued to elude him as his effort flew over the bar.

The second-half continued in the same vain, and United's lead was extended when Farey nodded home a Hughes free-kick before Styles rounded off the best move of the game by heading in Culpepper's cross.

Bethlehem College teen Boom, who replaced the unlucky Kenny on 57 minutes, rounded off the scoring from close range in stoppage time after Culpepper had notched United's fifth from Hughes' corner.

Coach Lowry was in philosophical mood after the six-goal haul, but was mindful of how much better the scoreline could have been.

'We missed too many chances,” he admitted, 'and we could have made life so much easier for ourselves.

'We missed more than we scored, and that's disappointing, but we kept a clean sheet and we go again against Mangere.

'They're a team that got to the semi-finals of the Chatham Cup, so that'll be a tough one. But the ball's still in our court and I'd rather be in my shoes than (North Shore coach) Paul Temple's shoes.

'We'll give it another go next week. We need four goals and a clean sheet and it's still in our hands. That's all you can ask for in football.

'The players are buzzing, and I don't need to motivate them for next week. We'll give it one more push and see what happens.”