REGARDLESS of the opposition, Luton Town were pleased to end their stay in North Devon on a winning note.

The Blue Square Premier side overcame emergency finalists Royal Racing FC Montegnee 3-1 at the Sports Ground on Sunday evening.

While Grimsby Town were busy playing their get out of Devon quick card, the professionalism of the Hatters shone through.

Manager Mick Harford praised his players for remaining focused on the task in hand against the Belgian underdogs.

"It was a bit of farce," he said. "But we just had to concentrate on what we were doing and not worry about what other clubs are doing.

"We came down here to try and win the competition and that's exactly what we've achieved.

"How other teams go about their business is up to them."

Just a day after seeing his team beat Exeter City in the semi-final, Harford made six changes to the starting line-up.

"The main reason we came down here for pre-season was to get match fit, to work on a few things and also to compete against other League clubs," he added.

"Our performance against Exeter on Saturday was excellent. It was a deserved win against a League One team.

"The final was a little strange as we didn't exactly know who we were supposed to be playing.

"It is still early in pre-season but overall we're delighted with the effort, commitment, work-rate and fitness of the players."

By winning three games and scoring three goals on each occasion, Luton saw three strikers make an impact in North Devon.

Tom Craddock's crisp close-range volley gave them the lead in the final and was typical of their clinical finishing throughout the week.

He topped the scoring charts with four goals and was later named player of the tournament.

Fellow frontmen Drew Talbot — who smashed a stunning goal against Bideford — and Liam Hatch also gave defences a few headaches along the way.

It was a real shame for the supporters and tournament organisers that they were denied a showpiece meeting between two genuine finalists.

Credit though to Royal Racing, who gave it their best shot after answering the call at the 11th hour.

Rather than a proposed friendly with Tavistock, the Belgian Promotion D Division side suddenly found themselves up against Harford's professional outfit.

And they looked determined to make the most of the unexpected opportunity, starting the match on the front foot.

Lone striker Paul Taylor, one of four English players in the cosmopolitan line-up, proved a particular pest for the Hatters' back four.

His dribbling skills created an opening for Jamie Gosling who really should have scored rather than allow Keith Keane to block.

The miss proved costly when Keane crossed and Craddock opened the scoring with a deadly strike.

By then Luton defender Alan White had also made a key interception when Phillipe Crespin, Racing's only Belgian player, tried to slot home.

For all their energy and enthusiasm, however, Montegnee must have sensed Luton could up the tempo when ever they needed.

Talbot almost added to his tournament tally, nipping between a static defence only to see his lob land on top of the crossbar.

Kevin Nicholls then thundered forward from midfield, taking the ball past Canadian keeper Jordan Vreiner before Dimitri Stratus cleared heroically off the line.

Again Taylor provided a threat at the other end, picking out Victor Araujo before ex-Yeovil Town player Gosling's shot was cleared once more by Keane.

Five minutes after the break an own goal from Jon Wheeldon made Racing's task even harder.

Wheeldon, otherwise excellent alongside Heath Creager at the back, sliced his attempted clearance into the roof of the net from a cross by Ryan Charles.

Both sides looked a little bemused at the award of a free-kick on the edge of the Luton area for an infringement spotted by referee Brett Huxtable. But Danny Williams wasn't complaining when his expertly taken shot flew past the wall to hand Montegnee a lifeline.

Punctuated by the piercing sound of Huxtable's whistle, the game became scrappy in the closing stages.

Not that the Hatters were too worried after substitute Asa Hall bundled in their third goal from a free-kick by Andy Burgess.

With Hall and Nicholls dictating the pace from central midfield, Luton rounded off their week in North Devon with a spell of keep ball.

Last season, charismatic captain Nicholls lifted the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for Luton at Wembley.

The Challenge Cup may not rank as highly as a trip to the home of English football, but the win was greeted passionately by the club's travelling fans.

Approaching each game with a professional attitude and playing some tidy football, Luton proved to be worthy winners.