Toney nets Scunthorpe winner after brave Fleetwood comeback

Posted Sunday, February 04, 2018 by PA

Ivan Toney scored a 78th-minute winner as Scunthorpe claimed a 3-2 victory over a Fleetwood side who had battled back from two goals down to level with only 10 men.

Josh Morris struck twice to put the Iron in charge, his second from the penalty spot after Ash Eastham was sent off after being adjudged to have handled the ball.

Fleetwood managed to draw level with goals from Ashley Hunter and Bobby Grant, only to end up empty-handed as Toney earned Scunthorpe boss Graham Alexander his first-ever win over his former employers.

Alexander left Highbury in 2015 and beat Town for the first time thanks largely to another Fleetwood old boy, Morris, who opened the scoring in the 26th minute when he rattled in Conor Townsend’s knock-down at the back post.

Referee Mark Heywood made a big call in the 43rd minute as he ruled that Eastham had deliberately handled Toney’s header in the six-yard box.

He awarded the Iron a spot-kick and brandished a straight red card at Eastham, with Morris slotting the ball home to make it 2-0.

Despite being down to 10 Town fought back just before the break with Hunter netting in the 45th minute.

The Iron sat back on their lead in the second half but Fleetwood did not stop pressing and ex-Scunthorpe man Grant popped up to bundle home Hunter’s parried cross in the 67th minute to level things up.

That goal woke Scunthorpe up and after Nathan Pond was ruled to have felled Toney just outside the box, the striker dusted himself down to curl the ball past Chris Neal for the match-winning goal.