Orient's McAnuff: We have given ourselves a chance

Boss Jobi McAnuff spoke of the “togetherness” in his Leyton Orient side after the Os third win in a week gave them a chance to sneak into the League Two play-offs.

Goals from Conor Wilkinson and Dan Kemp helped Orient beat a decent-looking Oldham Athletic side 2-1 at Brisbane Road on Saturday, a result which moves them up to ninth position in the table and just a couple of points behind Newport County – the side currently occupying seventh place, the final play-off spot.

The win over Oldham was preceded by 1-0 victories at Newport and Carlisle in the previous seven days, and new player-manager McAnuff said he has been delighted with not only results, but also his players’ attitude, since taking over in February.

He said: “For me the hallmark of any decent team is you have that togetherness and a desire to work for the man next to you.

“That has seen us get through some of the games – especially Newport and again Carlisle. And if you can do that and if you have the quality that we have got you have got a good chance of winning games.

“We’ve always believed in the group. I have spoken about momentum to the boys and once you get it you start feeling it. We have got that but we need to cling on to that now.”

Orient travel to Mansfield Town on Good Friday before hosting Walsall on Easter Monday – two sides struggling at the wrong end of the table.

McAnuff said: “We have got a massive Easter. What we have done is give ourselves a chance. It’s an open league, teams will take points from each other and we’ll see where we go.”

“(Today) we made it harder than it needed to be. I want us to get to a point where when we are 2-0 up we go and dominate teams. But it’s been a brilliant week.

“With the journeys that we’ve had and the games we’ve had, to come out with nine points is absolutely fantastic and it’s a good sign that we’re a bit disappointed with how we’ve managed to get over the line.

“It was good to get in 2-0. It took us a little time to get used to their shape, but then I was delighted to get a couple of goals.

“They’ve been hard to come by but it shows the confidence we now have. Connor (Wilkinson) is really confident and Kempy (Dan Kemp) has done really well since he’s come in. I came on and nearly wrecked it but it was nice to get over the line.”

“I have a few more grey hairs than I did three or four weeks ago. It’s been good, the first couple of weeks was critical for me to create a bit of separation.

“If I had just carried on is it clear enough who is making decisions? It’s a different perspective but we have great clarity and everyone knows their roles and that shows when we get out on the pitch.”