WELTON Rovers went down 5-1 at home against Hellenic Premier League side Tuffley Rovers in the second qualifying round of the FA Vase, writes Bob Allard.

It was the first match in charge for Welton’s newly appointed manager Matt Williamson, whose debut proved a baptism of fire.

Tuffley struck after just four minutes. A neat threaded pass split the Welton back line, allowing Harley Mustoe to race through and finish calmly past Oleksandr Vakymchuk. Ten minutes later, Welton were undone again - this time by a sweeping move that started deep in Tuffley territory and ended with Connor Walters finishing clinically.

Barely two minutes had passed before Mustoe added his second, drifting in from the left to poke home after Welton failed to deal with a free‑kick delivery.

Vakymchuk then produced a superb close‑range save to deny Eddie Lewis, preventing further early damage. Welton eventually settled, with Courtney Charles teeing up Chris Pile, whose low strike was saved by keeper Luke Merchant.

A deep Welton free‑kick just before the break caused panic in the Tuffley defence, but the visitors scrambled clear.

Welton emerged with renewed purpose after the interval. Charles saw a deflected effort cannon off the bar, and Williamson’s substitutions injected energy, with Will Ford and Dray Walker troubling the Tuffley back line.

However, a defensive lapse on 65 minutes gifted Jorell Sanmola an open goal, and he made no mistake to put Tuffley 4–0 up.

Welton continued to push. Charles fired wide, and substitute Oliver Tucker impressed with a lively cameo, forcing Merchant into another save.

Their persistence finally paid off in the 74th minute when Charles capitalised on a defensive error and slotted home to give the Green Army a glimmer of hope. That hope was short‑lived. In the closing moments, Walters struck again to complete a dominant Tuffley performance.