Ryan Maxwell’s wait for his first win as Waltham Forest player-manager goes on, as his side were stunned by Wadham Lodge in the Walthamstow Derby on Saturday.

Maxwell’s men were condemned to a 4-2 defeat at Kitchener Road which leaves them just a point above the bottom four in the Essex Senior League.

Waltham Forest got off to the worst possible start, as they were 3-0 down at half-time thanks to a first half double from Wadham Lodge’s Sherwin Stanley and a further strike from Brian Simpson.

Forest rallied after the break and they pulled one back early in the second half when Christian Owusu calmly slotted the ball home after being played through on goal. The fight-back was on moments later when Owusu notched his second, this time from the spot, after the referee spotted a handball inside the area.

But any hope of Forest snatching a point was well and truly dashed when Wadham Lodge were awarded a penalty of their own, which Stanley calmly dispatched to secure his hat-trick and a valuable three points for Marc Farrell’s men.

Meanwhile, it proved to be a better weekend for Waltham Abbey, as they ended their seven game losing streak with a 3-1 win over Romford.

Shad Nghandu was the hero for Waltham Abbey as he notched a hat-trick, in a result which saw the team climb to 13th place in the Bostik Football League North Division table.

Elsewhere in the Essex Senior League, the honours were shared between Great Wakering Rovers and Redbridge, in what was a crucial game at the top of the table between first and second place.

It was table-toppers Redbridge who took the lead against the run of play in the 11th minute, when Brian Moses opened the scoring from the edge of the area. However, Great Wakering Rovers’ response was almost immediate, as Nathan Dewberry levelled the scores up when he nodded the ball home in the 18th minute.

Redbridge were then handed a golden opportunity to regain the lead when they were awarded a spot kick, but Moses couldn’t add to his tally, as he blasted the ball over the bar.

Back came Rovers though, who spurned two glorious chances to take the lead after the interval, and in what proved to be an entertaining game, neither team could score the all-important winner, meaning the spoils were shared. The result means Redbridge remain in first place in the Essex Senior League, with a three point cushion over second place.

Lastly, Ilford returned to action with a 1-1 draw away to Sawbridgeworth Town FC on Saturday. The hosts took the lead through Andre Thomas inside the opening ten minutes, but were pegged back before half time, thanks to a goal from Ilford’s Tony Cookey. Both teams had chances to win the game, but neither side could take any of the opportunities which came their way, with the result leaving Ilford in seventh place in the table.