Leyton Orient manager Richie Wellens has insisted that despite fans’ frustration with Saturday’s 0-0 draw with struggling Burton Albion at Brisbane Road, it was still a decent result.
The O’s struggled and couldn’t find the breakthrough despite enjoying the lionshare of possession and having the better chances in Saturday’s early Kick-off, something the boss outlined distinctly when speaking to The East London Advertiser :
“We had better chances than Burton and obviously more possession. They came here to frustrate and slow the game down, but we were off it and our passing wasn’t as crisp.
“All in all, it’s been a bit of a frustrating day and a bit pedestrian at times but it’s another clean sheet and positive performance so we just have to take it and move on to the next week.
Orient go into Saturday’s tough trip to Barnsley with just one defeat in ten matches in all competitions, keeping three clean sheets in that period – a huge turnaround in form from the tough start to the season they endured, and Wellens was quick to point out the upwards trajectory that the club seem to currently be on.
“It’s important we just keep the points tally ticking over.
I thought our substitutions made an impact and thought we were the only team trying to win the game but it just didn’t drop for us and we didn’t show enough quality.
Josh Keeley has done well since he’s come into the team and we’ve had a consistent back four recently but there is competition for places and we’ve done really well stopping the opposition from putting the ball in the back of the net.”
And Leyton Orient will feel as though after Saturday they have four winnable league matches against struggling sides, with three home games against Crawley, Cambridge and Burton Albion and a trip to struggling Bristol Rovers on New Year’s Day. Pick up nine points from a possible twelve and you will see a real surge up the table.
They’ll also be boosted by the return of versatile midfielder Sean Clare in the coming weeks, who has missed the last few months due to injury, but was a real standout performer in a tough early stage of the season, and can give Orient another option in midfield or at fullback.
Writers View
There is no doubt that Leyton Orient are definitely becoming more competitive in the third tier and similar to last season could surge up the table after the festive period, but it may not come as a surprise that supporters were annoyed they could not find all three points against a struggling Burton.
But it is important for Wellens to keep the fans on board after a disappointing result with games coming thick and fast over the next few weeks as they look to build on their impressive form, starting at Oakwell on Saturday, as they finally have a Saturday kickoff at 3pm.
