League One preview: Leyton Orient

Last updated : 25 July 2008 By Iron-Bru.net
How did you fare last season?
Started very well - top after seven games, which was the best moment. The small squad and lack of depth took its toll and we finished mid table. Disappointing but would have taken this position at the beginning of the season.

Worst moment? Having Adam Boyd's blatant goal at Elland Road (foot over the line) disallowed. The only people not to see it were the referee and Dennis Wise. We would have gone on to win 2-1. Losing 0-5 at home to Swansea wasn't exactly marvellous.

How do you think you'll do this season?
Once again the squad, although slightly improved in quality , is probably still too small in numbers so mid table again.

What's your squad like?
See above. We have Four very good players in Adam Boyd, Sean Thornton, Adam Chambers and Tamika Makandawire and the ever improving Jason Demitriou. New signings are a mixed bag from the ex Chelsea defender, Danny Granville to the untried Andrew Cave-Brown. Ryan Jarvis from Norwich could be a good partner for Adam Boyd up front.

Which youngster will make the biggest impression in your team this season?
Jason Demitriou and Brian Saah.

What's your manager like and will he still be there at the end of the season? Martin Ling has overseen three seasons of continuous improvement and is widely respected by most fans both as the manager and an ex Orient player. Most probable reason he will not be there at the end of the season is that he will be recruited by a larger club.

Are you happy with your chairman/backroom staff?
Our Mr Hearn attracts critics and supporters in equal numbers. He is seen as either an exploiter or a saviour. We were certainly going down the financial toilet 13 years ago when he took over with a bankrupt club, poor team and a decrepit ground. We are now a division higher with three new stands with good facilities. Against this is that many feel the ground is too small (9,100 capacity) and that some of the property dealing may have over benefited Hearn's other companies to the detriment of the size of the ground.

The proposed move to the new Olympic Stadium will solve this (if it happens). My personal view is that he has been a positive Chairman of the club and we could have got a lot worse by far! The backroom staff is good. Dean Smith is a good assistant manager and the youth sides under Kevin Nugent are well run. There is also an excellent football in the community set up.

Which team do you want to beat the most and why?
Southend. It is a local derby and not a lot of love lost between the two supporters to say the least! Beating Leeds would be nice too!

Predict your champions and runners-up, the four play-off teams and the four to go down
Apart from Leeds United for promotion, I can't predict anything for this division!