Perhaps the key learning point for O’s fans this week is that if we are going to survive in League 1, we are going to do so in something of a long and drawn-out manner.

While on the face of it losing a close-fought encounter to the already promoted and very likely league title winners, Lincoln City, isn’t by any means a disaster of a result. The fact that Orient’s defeat combined with victories for Blackpool, Burton and Wigan dropped us down to 19^th place in the table, a mere 2 points off the relegation places at the end of the weekend, made it imperative that we managed to get something out of Tuesday’s night match at home to Mansfield Town.

It certainly wasn’t a game that will live long in the memory, but we managed to get a point (an outcome that seemed to suit both teams judging by the lack of attacking intent shown by either side in the closing stages!) and inch our way closer to securing our position in the third tier for another season.

The goalless draw did have the effect of drawing us level with both Burton and Blackpool having all played 43 games, while Wimbledon’s defeat at home to playoff contenders Stockport County on Wednesday evening kept them a further point behind.

With Exeter a further 4 points behind, a win against already-relegated Rotherham on Saturday coupled with the Grecians failing to get maximum points at home to Stockport would probably be enough to ensure our safety. We can only hope that our penultimate home game is a more enjoyable spectacle than Tuesday evening’s!

Speaking after the match, as well as praising Nigel Clough and his Mansfield side, Richie Wellens also pointed out just how many players we are missing through injury again, something that has been a major issue for us all through the season. The gaffer then went on to reflect on this season and suggested that: “For 3 years at this football club it’s been constant success. There was always going to be a time where we needed to survive to go again, and this is the time.”

In many ways I think most Orient fans will be glad to see the back of this underwhelming season. After the highs of the charge to the play-offs thanks to a run of 6 consecutive wins at the end of last season, we went into this season with high hopes. While the sheer number of players departing and needing to be replaced was always going to be a significant challenge, I don’t think too many fans were massively worried about the perceived quality of the new recruits. For a number of reasons though things simply haven’t worked out as well as we had hoped.

As touched upon earlier Injuries, both frequent and often significant, made it difficult for us to establish a clear first choice line-up and for the refreshed squad to gel. A factor clearly reflected in the inconsistency of the performances and an inability to string a run of decent results together. Let’s not forget that it wasn’t until the middle of March and the wins at Stevenage and at home to Peterborough that we finally managed back-to-back victories. That stop-start league form combined with dismal showings in the cup competitions have meant that there has been little to excite the Orient fanbase in 2025/26, something that has been exacerbated by comparing this to previous campaigns.

Going forward, assuming we stay up of course, we can only hope that the foundations have been laid in terms of the development of the squad for a much more cohesive start next term. Obviously, a lot will depend on where League 1’s leading goalscorer is playing his football next season, but even if Ballard does leave, that should give us significant funds to bring in the 3 or 4 shrewd additions to the squad that can build on the spine that has started to emerge over the last month or so.

On Monday evening the club hosted a Fans’ Forum with Chairman Nigel Travis, Chief Executive Mark Devlin and Chief Operating Officer Steve Tait along with representatives of different supporter groups. While once again the club was playing its cards close to its chest and there wasn’t a lot of earthshattering news to report, there were some interesting titbits:

• Firstly the survey about seating and pricing in the new stadium has garnered 2500 responses already. Although there hasn’t as yet been time to analyse the responses so far in any great detail, Mark Devlin suggested that the survey is a first step in the consultation process, even before we know the site or have visuals, but that there will be plenty of further opportunities for consultation, including focus groups etc, going forward. It was also reaffirmed that the club are hopeful of being able to provide more detail on the preferred site for the new stadium in the last quarter of the year.
• Ditto the progress on the training ground, there are a couple of preferred sites, but it is too early to give any further detail.
• There was an acknowledgement that there have been issues with our transfer business this season and that the club is reviewing and reworking its approach to player recruitment going forward. Specifically a focus on getting more return for what we are paying.
• For the moment there are no plans to replace Martin Ling with a new Director of Football or similar role. Parts of Ling’s role are being picked up by Dan McLoone, Mark Devlin, Steve Tait, Richie Wellens and Nigel Travis himself.

For now though the most important thing is to get things right on the pitch and to make sure we are still in this division and ready to hit the ground running in 2026/27, a convincing win to give us all a boost tomorrow afternoon would be an excellent place to start. 

Up the O’s!