Difficulty losing first match (5)
I believe the answer is:
light
'match' is the definition.
(light can mean a flame or match)
'difficulty losing first' is the wordplay.
'difficulty' becomes 'plight' (plight is a kind of difficulty).
'losing first' means to remove the first letter.
'plight' with its initial letter removed is 'LIGHT'.
(Other definitions for light that I've seen before include "Airy; not heavy" , "skedaddle!" , "Beam" , "Torch" , "free gift from The Sun" .)