Leyton Orient suffered their first defeat away from home in the National League as Femi Ilesanmi’s early strike was enough to see Boreham Wood emerge 1-0 victors.
Goalkeeper Ryan Huddart starred for The Wood as the 21-year-old made crucial saves to secure all three points for the home side.
A frantic start saw Boreham Wood take an early lead at Meadow Park, as left-back Ilesanmi rifled home from the left hand side of the penalty area. Ilesanmi latched on to a neat back heel from Keiran Murtagh putting the home side in front inside five minutes.
Dean Brill was twice on hand to prevent the host’s doubling their lead, getting down well to his left to deny Murtagh’s low curling effort from 20 yards, before denying the same man from a free-kick.
Orient had to wait 15 minutes to test Huddart. Jobi McAnuff’s driven free-kick was helped on by the head of Macauley Bonne but Huddart collected the ball comfortably.
Wood Work
The O’s weathered the storm in the opening quarter of an hour, slowly beginning to get a foothold in the game. O’s captain McAnuff wasn’t too far away from the mark as he tried his luck from distance.
Justin Edinburgh was forced to replace James Dayton with James Brophy; the former went off with a knock to his right knee after 28 minutes.
The hunt for an equaliser proved frustrating as the league leaders were restricted to shots from distance with Boreham Wood standing their ground.
Josh Coulson smacked the post with an acrobatic volley right on the cusp of half-time. The centre-back was first to Brophy’s corner-kick and was inches away from pulling Orient level.
Huddart Hailed
The second half began as the first half ended. The hosts were making the better of the chances as Joe Widdowson made a vital challenge to deny Bradley Ash a goal scoring opportunity.
Coulson came close once again from a set piece, this time hitting the target with a header but Huddart did brilliantly to keep it out.
Orient utilised all three of their substitutions before the final 15 minutes in a bid to change the course of the tie.
Tough To Take
McAnuff’s effort from the edge of the box skimmed wide of the target, whilst Josh Koroma tried his luck from a similar position after a clever turn.
Huddart made a vital save with his left boot, superbly keeping out Koroma’s deflected effort from close range. The number one had his backline to thank as they stood firm to block Bonne’s effort which looked destined for the bottom corner.
The O’s rallied in the closing stages but could not find an opening as Luke Garrard’s side clung on, handing Orient their second league defeat of the season. However, Salford City’s defeat at Chesterfield sees the O’s remain one point clear at the National League summit.
Match Stats
ORIENT: Dean Brill, Sam Ling (James Alabi 60’) Marvin Ekpiteta, Josh Coulson, Joe Widdowson, James Dayton (James Brophy 28’), Craig Clay, Dale Gorman (Alex Lawless 72’), Jobi McAnuff, Macauley Bonne, Josh Koroma.
SUBS: Sam Sargent, Dan Happe.
GOALS: N/A
BOOKED: N/A
WOOD: Ryan Huddart, Femi Ilesanmi, Mark Ricketts, David Stephens, Ricky Shakes, Tom Champion, Keiran Murtagh, Bradley Ash, Jamal Fyfield, Sorba Thomas, Gozie Ugwu (Justin Shaibu 89’)
SUBS: Burbidge, Smith, Parry, Ndiaye.
GOALS: Ilesanmi (4’)
BOOKED: Fyfield (51’) Ricketts (69’)
REFEREE: James Oldham
