We ended last week’s blog (Orient Nerd Weekly Ramblings- Might a settled starting eleven be the key to Orient getting on track in the season?) with the hope that the additional time on the training ground as a result of the Peterborough game being postponed might help Orient to get back on track and get their campaign up and running. It wasn’t particularly pretty, but thanks to our resilience, spirit, and being tough to beat, we did just that at Reading last Saturday.

With it being nestled very much in Commuterville, Reading is easy enough to get to, the only decision to make is whether to take the Elizabeth Line all the way through, or to jump on one of the very regular trains from Paddington. Based on our visit back in January we opted for the latter, as the missus sagely said: “It isn’t a proper awayday if you can’t get the ‘big train’”.

We deliberately arrived just under an hour ahead of our connecting train to Reading Green Park to give us time for a quick pint in the excellent Three Guineas pub, which actually forms part of the old station building. From there it is just 7 minutes on the train and then a brief stroll up to the ground via what is actually a very pleasant walk. For a relatively newly built ground it is pretty good and the view from the away end is excellent.

There was a bit of a surprise when the O’s line-up landed on social media with all three of Tom James, Jack Currie and Sean Clare being named in the starting eleven. Originally I thought we might have been changing to play three centre backs with TJ moving centrally. However as it turned out Clare was going to start in central midfield. If I am reading the feelings correctly, I think the Orient fanbase has remained a little bit split on Clare as a right back, but credit where it is due, he was a revelation in the middle of the park, and for me our man of the match.

We also saw O’Neill switch to the right wing and Dan Agyei move to the opposite flank but in truth it didn’t make us look majorly more threatening in attack. Some further work needed there for me.

The opening period was fairly evenly matched with both sides having a couple of sights at goal. Then in the 28^th minute Charlie Kelman tried his luck from the edge of the area, and somehow Coniah Boyce-Clarke in the Royals’ goal let the shot through him and into the net. They say luck evens itself out across the course of a season, and after some heartbreaking late goals in recent matches, for me we deserved our little bit of good fortune.

The second half felt very much about trying to hold onto our lead in the face of mounting pressure from the home side. Zach Hemming made an excellent stop from Chem Campbell and then Jack Currie, Omar Beckles and Jordan Brown threw themselves in the way of follow up efforts to avert any further danger. As gaffer Richie Wellens said after the match: “I think what optimised our performance today was that the two loudest cheers from our supporters were: one when we scored the goal, and the second when people are putting blocks in and putting their bodies on the line and defending the goal.”

There was one hairy moment when Michael Craig hit the angle of crossbar and post but other than that we were able to see it out for a much-need and well-deserved win. It has been a tough start to the season, but the spirit, commitment and sheer desire to get the job done was what really stood out for me. Hopefully that will stand us in good stead going forward as the games, and tough ones at that, are coming thick and fast at the moment.

On Tuesday night of course we headed over to West London and a new ground for the majority of the travelling O’s fans. As there were quite a lot of things to come out of the evening, I am going to tackle this in three parts.

Orient’s performance

Considering the number or changes (10 in total) we made and the level of the opposition I thought we acquitted ourselves well. Taking the lead with just 10 minutes played was almost as much of a pleasant surprise as the fact that it was Brandon Cooper stealing in at the far post in true “goal poacher” style. I guess we always knew that a Premier League side was going to up its level and come at us after conceding, but the two goals in quick succession and the third just before the break that sealed the tie felt a bit cruel.

It was always going to be an uphill struggle in the second half and losing Jack Simpson to a red card for two (silly!) bookable offences made it a pretty futile cause. Still, we showed we could compete against a top tier side, albeit a much changed one from their previous outing at the Etihad, and there were a lot of positives to take from the evening.

Gtech Community Stadium

Having heard and read quite a bit about Brentford’s new stadium and how it could be seen as an aspiration for Orient’s future development, I was really keen to see it for myself.

Obviously being in the depths of West London, transport isn’t as straightforward as for some inner London grounds, but there are plentiful trains from Waterloo to Kew Bridge, and also some other tube options to get there. The way that the designers have managed to squeeze the stadium in amongst housing blocks in a tight space is fairly impressive, and the ground itself is well designed with spacious modern concourses and a decent enough view (from where I was at least!).

However, whether it was a result of it being a League Cup game aimed at families and those who aren’t able to get tickets for Premier League matches on a regular basis, the whole place seemed to lack atmosphere and came across as a little bit soulless. Save for the noise coming from the 2,300 Orient faithful throughout the entire ninety minutes of course!

If/when Orient do get to plan our own new ground it would be worth giving some thought as to how we ensure that it still feels like a proper football ground, rather than an “event venue”.

The “Stewarding”

Even though it didn’t directly involve me as I was in the section round the corner level with the penalty area, there is simply no way that I can avoid mentioning the attitude and behaviour of the stewards/ bouncers and their treatment of travelling fans.

It started with the most thorough search I have ever been subject to in entering a sporting or any other venue, and I have been to Yankee Stadium in New York and was at the World Cup in Qatar! Never before have I been asked to hand over my wallet so it could be checked, thankfully I reluctantly complied, whereas I know others incurred the wrath of the high-viz brigade simply by asking why they needed to check wallets, glasses cases and mobile phone covers.

While things seemed to be pretty ok before the match and during the first half, as we know the problems started after half-time when in their infinite “wisdom” the “safety personnel” decided that they were now going to enforce a strict sit/stand in your allocated seat policy.

While I understand that a lot of travelling fans, especially in the lower leagues, like to have unallocated seating and choose where they want to sit/ stand, when the allocation is sold out though it is probably much safer from a crowd management perspective to make fans take up their allocated seat.

However if they are going to insist upon fans taking up their allotted place then it needs to be made clear right from the start. To try to introduce it midway through the game was always going to be a recipe for chaos, and their actions created a potentially very dangerous situation. So we very nearly had a situation where those responsible for spectator safety actually put it at risk!

No one wants to go back to the dark days of watching football in the 70’s and 80’s, but overzealous/ downright aggressive and confrontational behaviour from those who are supposedly there to ensure our safety is sadly becoming too common.

Next up for the O’s are three tough-looking matches away at Stockport and then at home to Peterborough and Wrexham. We can only hope that the gritty win at Reading has put us on track and we can put some more points on the board and start to climb that table.

Up the O’s!