AFTER being knocked out of two cups Ilford will be hoping a return to league action sees them back to winning ways.

AFTER being knocked out of two cups Ilford will be hoping a return to league action sees them back to winning ways.

Last Wednesday, Colin Walton’s side lost out 1-0 in the League Cup to Dulwich Hamlet, before putting up a spirited fight in their 2-0 loss to Ryman Premier side Carshalton Athletic in the FA Trophy.

The Foxes return to Cricklefield on Saturday for a game against Wingate & Finchley and then make the trip to Leyton on Wednesday, with Walton believing his side can improve on their league position of 18th.

“It’ll be a tough couple of games but I am going into them full of confidence,” he said.

“We had chances against Carshalton and they didn’t finish the game off until the last 10 minutes, so that was encouraging against a good Ryman Premier team.

“The way the fixtures have fallen sees us in a false position but it is up to us to make sure we can lift ourselves up the league table.”

If anything, the games against Dulwich Hamlet and Carshalton highlighted the Cricklefield outfit’s frailty in attack, with the ex-Clapton boss looking at pushing Danny Gabriel back to his natural striking role after deploying him in midfield.

If this fails, Walton has warned his side he’ll look elsewhere to boost his attacking options.

“Danny has played the last couple of games in midfield and although playing well, striker is his best position,” said the Foxes chief.

“I will look to push him forward to improve our options, but if that doesn’t work it is an area I definitely need to look at seriously.”

Before the cup exits, Ilford had not tasted defeat in the league for over a month and with an important game against Harlow Town last night (Wednesday), Walton hopes the return to league action will be a blessing.

“We’ll have everybody back in time for Saturday and, while we will be lacking strength in depth against Harlow, we will face a test of how far we have really come in the last month or so,” he said.

“Wingate like to pass the ball around and will definitely be a handful to come up against, but the game will be another hard one.”

He added, of next Wednesday’s game: “Leyton have had their fair share of problems on and off the field, but no game in this league is easy so it is important we stay fully focused on the job at hand.”

Wingate go into Saturday’s game in good form, winning four out of their last five league games, all coincidently 2-1 and are seventh in the league.

Leyton have struggled so far this season and occupy 20th spot with their only league win coming back in August.