The Foxes took the lead in the 11th minute through Joe Hall before the same man doubled their advantage from the penalty spot nine minutes later and it stayed that way until half time.

Sports pulled one back late on, although the linesman had signalled for a foul throw in the build up to the goal, but Carl Mullings grabbed Ilford’s third deep into stoppage time and Fenn was thrilled with the victory.

He said: “Greenhouse is a difficult place to come, especially during the week and they’ve been beating sides so I’ll definitely take winning 3-1 on a Monday night!

“Danny Jones felt his hamstring before the game which was a shame for us. We’re getting him looked and hopefully he will be alright for the weekend against Basildon United.

“We had Joe come in for his first team full debut and he’s notched twice so really pleased with his contribution.”

Jones was set to start at Greenhouse, but Ryan Barker-Francis replaced him. It didn’t knock Foxes focus, though, as they began brilliantly.

Hall missed two great chances before opening the scoring while Luke Thomas and Mullings also went close during the first half.

But it was a slightly different story after the break as the hosts come back into the game well. Ilford managed to bounce back from conceding, however, and added another to earn a third consecutive victory.

Fenn added: “They are a funny lot my boys, they tend to switch off at the wrong times. It is up to me as a manager to get the consistency and that is the challenge, but I’ve got a good set of lads.

“We are missing a few key players, but we have a good squad. It is a case of getting the consistency over the 90 minutes. I thought we were hard done by over the throw.

“The linesman flagged so we’re disappointed with that. We lost our clean sheet, but showed a good reaction to come back and get the third goal.”

George Sessions
Ilford Recorder