Buckland Athletic atTENd to business with ease

BUCKLAND Athletic ran up a record scoreline during the tenure of manager Matt Cusack against a spirited Wellington AFC side on Wednesday evening (August 5).

Cusack was “delighted with everyone” for the roles that they played in the one-sided victory at Homers Heath.

They survived an early scare after a misplaced pass at the back thanks to the intervention of goalkeeper Mike Searle and there were a few of those lapses in the first half in truth.

At the other end of the field though, the Bucks “got out of the traps quickly and raced into a three-goal lead in impressive style.”

Sammy Stayt’s deflected effort broke the deadlock though there is some debate between it being an own goal or his.

Danny Frankum, after setting up the first, crossed well for Ryan Bush to head home just minutes later.

Next up, Josiah McKayle converted after the initial shot from Jamie Simmonds was kept out, really asserting the home side’s dominance in the process.

There were a few more opportunities before the break but no further goals to show for it.

“At half-time, it was then about trying to keep a clean sheet,” said Cusack and the next two goals were in the favour of Buckland.

Simmonds was instrumental once more, firing a low ball across which found the back of the net via a Wellington defender.

Bush scrambled home the fifth and his second of the evening after his first shot was saved, shortly after a superb double-stop by young ‘keeper Harry Lawrence, who stood out for Welly despite the final scoreline.

George Russell and Kai Swann replaced Coby White and Rafa Beadman in the first of two double substitutions for the Bucks.

This shift in flow may have benefited the Tangerines as they finally got the goal that their determination warranted. Reegan Scotcher pulled the ball back to the edge of the area with Ned Ogilvie was on hand to sweep it home.

After a period of frustration in possession, the Yellows re-found their form in front of goal.

Kai Swann picked out the bottom corner with an assist from Bush, opening his account for the club’s 1st XI.

Captain Ben Carter, who had only just entered the fray from the bench alongisde Jack Baxter (in the places of McKayle and Simmonds), was denied an instant impact by another strong Lawrence save.

Baxter was able to beat Welly’s defence though, chipping in with goals seven and nine, the latter being a very astute chip.

Meanwhile, Stayt fired in the eighth and 10th of the fixture- perhaps it was fitting for Saturday’s match-winner to notch the record breaker for Cusack.

The Bucks boss described it as “A five-star performance from the boys”, adding that they “were absolutely ruthless in the second half and when we made those changes, they [the subs] all came on to prove a point and you want players like that, who are hungry.”

All of those in Buckland’s changed blue strip were worthy of praise and perhaps none more so than energetic midfielder Jamie Simmonds.

Alongside Isaac McCue, his willingness to get on the ball and drive forward stood out once again.

“I thought Simmo was tremendous,” said Cusack.

He continued: “Simmo has played at higher levels, I’ve had him at higher levels and he’s been with me for a long time now, I know what I can get out of him.

“His background is that he struggles to sustain a sequence of games, historically, he tends to break down so we’re managing him carefully. I think he’s been pivotal in coming off of the bench recently and he earned that start.”

Cusack also paid tributes to Wellington: “We know they’ve had a bit of a tough time recently but it was important to us that we started quickly and set our intentions from the get-go.

“The opposition were spirited and they stuck together.”

As part of a busy early-season schedule, Buckland have a quick turnaround to take on Barnstaple Town, last season’s champions of the Western League Premier, in the FA Cup on Saturday (August 8).

“We’ll be the underdog because they are the higher-level team now.

“We’ll go into it with great confidence after back-to-back wins here and we need to do that this season, make this place a fortress and a very difficult place for the opposition to come to and that’s what we intend to do on Saturday.”

Barum’s campaign at step four is yet to get underway and so Buckland, at the very least, have the edge of (competitive) match sharpness.