v 
BLUES
Here I was ready to post the preview, 'unchanged team, maybe Macca on bench' and Tilly, who has never managed a winning Blues side against the O's, throws the Aussie curveball!
Robson-Kanu looks far more at home on the left wing than Walker and I hope Tilly sees the light but I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same outside ten that started v Crewe, new dad Sawyer and all, crikey he looks as if he just came out of the womb himself, but yes, very tough on the boy Yank, who will drop to the bench.
Speaking to Blues World Blues boss Steve Tilson said: "I just felt we were going to be without Steve Mildenhall for seven or eight matches and that was a long time. It isn't a reflection on how Ian Joyce played at Crewe but he hasn't played that many games, (well he wont Tills if you don't play him), and I just feel had it been one or two games he would have had the nod. But it is too many games and it may have been too much of a gamble.
An obviously disappointed Joyce seemed to have taken the news with good grace: "Joycey was as good as I thought he would be about it. We explained he has the opportunity of playing at the football club but he didn't have that many competitive games last season and he needs some games to push on. I said if it was four months down the line I would probably play him."
Meanwhile ex-Orient boss Brushy had this to say to BBC Radio Essex on why we can't seem to beat the Borient but always finish above them in the final reckoning. "Over the past few years we haven't beaten them and we don't seem to have had an ounce of fortune, with refereeing decisions, last-minute goals and sending-offs, so that should change one day. We're improving and we believe that come November time we will start to really see our capabilities."
This time we'll do it! Maybe a high scoring match, 3-1, 4-2, but we'll do it. Why? For a start Clarkey is watching the tele. "I always like to watch the goals on television to see where we've been going wrong and I think that's a good way of improving things. You learn from your mistakes, (oh I hope so Clarkey), and we certainly have been letting in too many goals this season so we know we need to get better. But we've been working on our shape in training and we want to get back to being as tight at the back as we were during the second half of last season because we know it played a big part in us going on to reach the play-offs." As well as Barney's goals but we accept the point and I hope we see some of it on Friday.
More importantly there's Dougie and the confidence he had brought to the team. (If he could pass some of it to Lee to cheer him up that would be great.) When we went behind BeforeDougie everyone felt thing's were gonna go pear shaped but we saw at Crewe from the team through to the crowd there's a new belief more goals will come. The youngsters in midfield certainly seem to have grown in the the veteran strikers presence.
No, the game is ours.
Please.
It just must be.
I mean it just has to be, hasn't it?
OPPOSITION
| 12 | Southend United | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 10 | -3 | ||||
| 13 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 9 | -1 | ||||
| 14 | Peterborough United | 7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 11 | 8 | +1 | ||||
| 15 | Huddersfield Town | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 11 | 8 | -2 | ||||
| 16 | Swindon Town | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 8 | -3 | ||||
| 17 | Leyton Orient | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 8 | -5 |
Leyton Orient kicked off the 2008-2009 season with a 2-1 win over Hereford United at home. Dean Beckwith put Hereford ahead before JJ Melligan and Adam Boyd gave Orient the win. Borient's next game was against Ipswich Town in the Carling Cup which they lost 4-1 with the away teams only goal coming from Boyd once again. Back in the league they were hammered 3-0 away to the Posh. After this were two consecutive goalless draws against Carlisle United at home and Brighton & Hove Albion away.
The O's started September against the Blues in the JPT Ist Round which they won 4-2 with goals from Ryan Jarvis, Adam Chambers, JJ Melligan and a late penalty from that man Boyd. They then won an away league match 2-0 against Walsall the following Saturday with goals from Paul Terry and a penalty from, yes, Adam Boyd with his fourth of the season. This was Terry's first goal for the club after being there for just over a season. Since that high moment a reality check with two succesive home defeats, 3-0 to Stockport County and 3-1 to Leicester, Chambers getting an equaliser before two late goals won it for the Foxes.
O's boss and ex-Blue, Martin Ling, is unlikely to make too many changes, so fit-again former Blue loanee Dean Morgan, who made his debut as a substitute at the weekend, looks likely to stay on the bench and he could be joined by Simon Dawkins, who is back in training this week after recovering from an ankle injury. Paul Terry (groin) and Ryan Jarvis (hamstring) should also be fit but Danny Granville, Tamika Mkandawire, Solomon Shields are out. While another loan player, Jack Jeffrey, misses out with a knee problem, another former Blue, Wayne Gray, will take no part as he is out with a longer term knee injury that may see him out for the season. The game will be the last for defender Luke Ashworth, as his loan spell is up, although Ling would like to extend the deal.
Ling insists that Borient played well in against Leicester, here's a view from O's fanzine 'Pandemonium' editor Matthew Roper, who couldn't believe Orient lost that match, and the Orient team that finished the game. (Edited from the Waltham Forest Guardian, September 22, 2008).
I am sitting here after the Leicester game still trying to work out how we lost and how the bookies ever made them joint favourites for the league.Yes, OK, you can argue we were not clinical enough and that they took their chances but that still does not explain how we can come away with 70 per cent of the game and not get a least a point on the board for our endeavours - football is a cruel mistress at times!
So, after that defeat we sit in the lower half of the table and this time last year when we were seemingly running away with the division is all but a distant memory. We have injuries queuing from the treatment room, down Oliver Road and towards Spitalfields, our loan signings are the only area of growth in the UK at the current time and what's more Theo took a break from his Wyvernly duties at the weekend to go and top up his already sun burned body on the South Coast - just what is going on!
All in all, it hasn't been a disastrous start but we have already shown, like many teams probably, the thin dividing line between sweet success and heartache this season come May. We do seem very Jekyll and Hyde and you never know what Orient is going to turn up so far this season, but you can be sure we have to battle for every point as even when we do play to our strengths and show some pride and passion you can still get punished - just like Saturday!
So next up it's Southend. Ticket sales are good and hopefully if the weather holds we can make it another barmy East End knees up evening on the Essex coastline this Friday. As always it'll be an electric atmosphere in the away end and any O's fan would take a repeat of the 4-2 win we got there at the beginning of the month!
Personally I would settle for Boyd in the 89th minute down our end - think about it, hold the thought - mmmmm - lovely jubbly! (I'm sure you would my son.)
Leyton Orient: Morris, Purches, Thelwell, Saah, Palmer, Melligan (Morgan 75), Chambers, Terry, Demetriou, Boyd, Jarvis.
Subs Not Used: Jones, Cave-Brown, Ashworth, Jeffery. Goal: Chambers 44.
PREVIOUSLY
Wemberley, Wemberley.....yes, we've been there, December 6 1930 against Clapton Orient, and we still bloody lost, 1-3, Jones our goal scorer.
Just a few seconds away last February from having to stop saying Mark Salter was the last Southend player to score a winning goal against the Borient. Thank you Mr. McDermid. Oh well, if you want to, have a read about that win at www.thelittlegazette.com/news/loadsngl.asp?cid=EDY3&id=408765.
We've actually beaten them 4-1 at the Hall, Apr. 12 1930; Baron (2), Ward and Barnett the scorers, and 3-0, Oct. 21 1983; Ferguson, McDonough and Phillips, also a Friday night! However pride of place must go to Richard Cadette with his four goals, along with O'Shea, on, yes another Friday night, Aug. 23 1985. Wonder if Lingy remembers that one?
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Sat. Nov. 30 1907 Away FACQ3 1-1
(Thanks to the boffins on the SUFC Database who have trumped the history boys at FootyMAD once again.)
FIXTURES
All 15.00 unless stated: Friday, 26 September; Tranmere (18/19) v Colchester (3/1), 19.45; Saturday, 27 September; Bristol Rovers (18/19) v Crewe (Bet of the Day - 3/1), Cheltenham (13/8) v Stockport (15/8), Leeds (2/5) v Hereford (8/1, in a two horse race!), Leicester (8/13) v Hartlepool (11/2), Milton Keynes Dons (11/10) v Peterborough (5/2), Northampton (6/4) v Brighton (21/10), Oldham (5/6) v Huddersfield (7/2), Scunthorpe (4/6) v Yeovil (5), Walsall (6/4) v Carlisle (15/8); Sunday, 28 September; Swindon (6/4) v Millwall (2/1), 14:00.
BET
Southend (10/11) Draw (5/2) Orient (7/2)
Blues 8-1 promotion, Lee Barnard 28-1 to finish league one top scorer, Billy Paytner 80-1!
Most Draws 12/5 or 5/2 but for a full update on all the league fixtures go to www.oddschecker.com/football/english/league-one.
REF
The man in the middle is Grant Hegley from Herts. This will be his 12th competitive match involving Southend with 11 being at Roots Hall. We have won 8, drawn 1 and lost 2, so not a bad record and he keeps the cards in his pocket by all accounts.
HISTORY
Leyton Orient was originally formed by members of the Glyn Cricket Club in 1881, many of whom were former students of Homerton College. The team has had several name changes since, first as Eagle Cricket Club in 1886 then as Orient Football Club in 1888. History books written on the Club by its Historian Neilson N Kaufman suggest that the choice of the name Orient came about at the behest of a player (Jack R Dearing) who was an employee of the Orient Shipping Company (later to be taken over by P&O). The club's name was changed again to Clapton Orient in 1898 to represent the area of London in which they played. However, some historians think the name Orient was simply chosen due to its oddity and has no connections to them being an East-End club.
The name Leyton Orient was adopted following the conclusion of the Second World War. The club had moved to Leyton in 1937. A further rename back to simply Orient took place in 1966 after the Borough of Leyton was absorbed into the London Borough of Waltham Forest. That renaming followed a financial crisis (one of several to hit the club, and by no means the first or last) and restructuring of the company behind the club; this is remembered for a "pass the bucket" collection that took place at a special meeting of supporters in the East Stand, when complete closure was claimed to be a definite possibility.
The club finally reverted back to Leyton Orient in 1987, shortly after Tony Wood took over as chairman and at a time when a supporters campaign was taking place in the Leyton Orientear fanzine to reinstate the Leyton part of the club's name.
The O's are the second oldest Football League club in London and the south-east of England behind Fulham. They played in the 2nd Division of the Southern League in 1904, joined the Football League in 1905 and are the 24th oldest club currently playing in the Football League.
The 1914-15 season was the last football season before the League was suspended due to the outbreak of the First World War. 41 members of the Clapton Orient team and staff joined up into the 17th Battalion Middlesex Regiment (the Footballers' Battalion) the highest of any football team in the country and the first to join up en masse. At the final game of the season - Clapton Orient vs Leicester Fosse, 20,000 people came out to support the team. A farewell parade was also hosted, but not before the O's had won 2-0. The British Film Institute hold a brief recording of this historic match and parade in their archives.
During the Battle of the Somme, three players gave their lives for King and Country: Richard McFadden, George Scott and William Jonas. Though they were the only Orient staff to have died during the First World War, many others sustained wounds, some more than once and were not able to resume their football careers after the war. Prior to the First World War, O's striker Richard McFadden had saved the life of a boy who was drowning in the River Lea as well as rescuing a man from a burning building. History was made on Saturday April 30 1921 when the Prince of Wales, later to become King Edward Vlll, visited Millfields Road to see the O's play Notts County. The Orient won 3 - 0 and this was the first time a member of royalty had attended a Football League match. The royal visit was to show gratitude for Clapton Orient's patriotic example during the Great War and there is now a plaque erected on the site of the Millfields Road Stadium to commemorate this historic event.
The story of the club's major involvement in the First World War has been told in a 2005 book entitled 'They Took The Lead', by Stephen Jenkins (the deputy chairman of Leyton Orient Supporters' Club). In July 2006 Steve Jenkins, assisted by Les Bailey took a party of one hundred and fifty Leyton Orient Supporters and members of the Leyton and Manor Park Royal British Legion over to the Somme region of northern France, to visit the WW1 war graves and in particular to pay their respects at the resting places of Richard McFadden, William Jonas and George Scott - this was the first official visit to the O's war graves for 90 years. The trip was so successful that a second visit to the Somme took place the weekend of July 12/13 2008, this time one hundred and eighty three O's supporters and members of the RBL made the historic pilgrimage. Media interest is growing concerning this amazing and proud period of the Orient's history. Chris Slegg a BBC London reporter travelled with the party and footage of the Somme trip was shown on every local news bulletin throughout the day on the Monday following the trip. It is hoped that a documentary or film will one day be made on Clapton Orient's proud service during the Great War.
Orient's golden years were in the 1960s and 1970s. In the 1961/62 season Orient were promoted to the top tier of English football, the First Division (now the FA Premier League), for the only time in their history, after finishing second in Division Two under the management of Johnny Carey. The team struggled in the top flight and were relegated from the top division the following season. Nonetheless, they did defeat West Ham United in a famous 'double' victory (home and away wins). They spent the whole of the 1970s in Division Two. In 1978 Orient were defeated in the semi final of the FA Cup, the furthest they have progressed in that competition.
Leyton Orient were Division Three South champions in the 1955/56 season and Division Three champions in the 1969/70 season. They were also the Anglo-Scottish Cup Runners up 1976/77.
In 1978 the club was indirectly responsible for the album Variations (album) composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber for his brother, the cellist Julian Lloyd Webber. This reached No.2 in the pop album charts. Variations came about as the result of a bet between the two brothers on the outcome of Orient's final game of the 1976/77 season against Hull City.
Leyton Orient were promoted in the 1988/89 season, when under manager Frank Clark they were promoted in the Division Four Play-Off Final after a 2-1 aggregate victory over Wrexham F.C. More recently, under manager Tommy Taylor, Orient were defeated in the 1999 and 2001 Third Division Play-Off Finals, played at Wembley Stadium and the Millennium Stadium respectively. The latter final saw the fastest ever club goal scored to date at the Millennium Stadium, as Orient's Chris Tate scored after just 27 seconds.
Leyton Orient's most recent promotion was in the 2005/06 season, finishing in 3rd place and gaining automatic promotion to the Football League One under the direction of manager Martin Ling. This was the club's first automatic promotion in 36 years, and ended a period of 11 years in the English league's bottom division. This promotion season also saw an excellent FA Cup run, with Leyton Orient progressing to the 4th round after beating Premiership side Fulham F.C. Promotion was only secured in the final minutes of the final game of the season, away at Oxford United; with the score tied at 2-2 and Orient seemingly destined to miss out yet again on promotion, news came through of a late goal scored against promotion rivals Grimsby Town F.C. that would potentially promote Orient, and the Orient fans were still celebrating this when - some 14 seconds later - Lee Steele scored to confirm Orient's promotion. The result also relegated Oxford to the Football Conference.
In 2006-07, Orient endured a difficult season in the third tier, having spent most of the season in or around the relegation zone, and were bottom of the table at times in the first half of the season. An improvement in fortunes after Christmas - including memorable wins against Millwall, Tranmere Rovers and a vital win at eventually-relegated Bradford City near the end of the season - helped them finish in 20th place, one spot above the relegation zone. Most of the promotion-winning side left at the end of the season, through a combination of players released and some rejecting new contracts, and while the club's longest-serving player Matthew Lockwood did sign a new contract, he moved to Nottingham Forest for an undisclosed sum later in pre-season.
2007-08 was better, as Orient finished 14th with 60 points. The O's began the season in fine form, not dropping out of the top 7 until after Christmas. But due to the size of the squad when injuries became apparent the team began to struggle because they had nothing in reserve so started to slowly fall down league and only recording 3 wins from the last 12 games.