Bude faced last seasons runners up Elburton Villa at Haye Road on Tuesday and found an inability to defend set pieces cost them the chance of a good result. Villa were ahead inside two minutes from their first corner of the game. The ball was chipped in to the front post where it was flicked on to Villa striker Matthews who was able to poke home from 4 yards.
After their sluggish start Bude played some nice football and equalised with the best move of the match. Bude keeper Gary Dinshaw rolled the ball short to Josh Allen who started a move which included 7 Bude players before being rifled home by Laurie Turpin to make it 1-1. Villa were back in front in the 26th minute when Baker got in behind and was able to slot home despite the on-rushing efforts of defenders Willshire and Allen. Villa then played some nice football and passed the ball around well with the key moment in the match happening 4 minutes into stoppage time at the end of the first half. Another Elburton corner was not properly dealt with and Matthews rose highest to head in the decisive third goal.
Both sides battled well in the second half but Villa were always in control despite their keep having to make an excellent double stop from Bude striker Turpin who was unlucky not to score his second of the night. The game ended as it started, a set piece from Villa being curled into the box and Elburton’s Carter was there to prod home. It was a decent game which ultimately came down to the home sides’ superiority at set pieces seeing them score three of their four goals.