Paignton Villa
reserves 4,
and Kellaton 1
Kingsbridge and Kellaton turned in one of their worst performances of the season as they lost out 4-1 to relegation rivals Paignton Villa.
Kingsbridge failed to recover from a first half in which they conceded three goals and the result once again leaves the Ks looking over their shoulder at the relegation zone.
On a bobbly surface in Paignton, both sides struggled to get a hold of the ball in the early stages and both sides could only really threaten from set pieces.
Alex Thomas had the first chance of note, flashing a header wide of the far post from an escellent Robin Lee delivery.
Villa took the lead around 10 minutes in to the match as the ball was lofted over the Kingsbridge back line and the striker took the ball down and struck it in to the bottom right corner of the net.
The goal should have spurred Kingsbridge in to action, but once again the midfield struggled to get a hold of the ball and create anything going forward.
Kingsbridge had Richard Thuel to thank for not going further behind as the veteran ‘keeper pulled off a succession of smart saves to keep the deficit to just one goal.
Villa got their second later in the first half as another ball over the top found its way between defender Adam Phillips and goalkeeper Thuel.
The home striker was in between the pair and managed to jab the ball in to the back of the net.
Kingsbridge were reeling but started to try and get more of a foothold in the game.
Phil Thomas and Matt Tucker in the full-back positions started to grow in to the game in an attacking sense, but the away side continued to struggle to create anything clear-cut.
The best Kingsbridge could muster before the half-time break was a wayward long shot from midfielder Chris Thomas.
The next goal was always going to be crucial and Villa got it before the half-time whistle.
Some head tennis in the Kellaton box ended with the ball landing at the feet of the burly home striker, and he smashed the ball in with glee to give Paignton a three-goal cushion.
K and K improved after the break, with the introduction of Mark Edmonds to the back line providing more of a solid base to build from.
The midfield battle was where the next goal was going to come from in this relegation dogfight clash and Alex and Chris Thomas started to take control of the game.
Despite taking control of the ball, Kingsbridge continued to struggle to create chances but they did get a goal midway through the second half.
Edmonds collected the ball in a deep midfield position and slipped Chris Thomas in behind the Paignton defence down the right flank.
Thomas took a touch and smashed a delivery across the box, where Robin Lee was on hand at the back post to finish the move confidently.
That goal gave Kingsbridge a chance to get back in to the game, but it was snatched away just a minute later as Paignton immediately restored their three-goal lead.
With Kingsbridge intent on getting forward, they were light on numbers at the back and the home side exploited that to great effect.
A long ball forward was cushioned down inside the box and the onrushing midfielder side-footed the ball in to the back of the net to complete Kellaton’s bad day at the office.