Leyton Orient first team captain Charlie Lee insists it will be an ongoing learning curve at the O’s this season. Lee’s Orient side lost 2-0 at Sutton United on Saturday in their first game in the Vanarama Conference after their relegation.

A Jamie Collins penalty and a Dean Beckwith tap in earned Sutton the three points but Lee acknowledges that is side will learn a lot about themselves this season. Speaking to leytonorient.com post match “it was a tough game and once we conceded we were chasing it a bit. Think they did a bit of a job on us and they played the game really well”.

It was no surprise Orient found it hard at Sutton with ten of their starting 11 brought into the club during the summer but Lee is hopeful that his side can build on the loss. “the mood was really down after the game, it has been positive in pre season and we were optimistic going in. However, we have to be realistic that we haven’t done a lot together in pre season but it was a good day for learning and hopefully we can learn from these mistakes and take them into the rest of the season”.

O’s head coach Steve Davis felt his side would have learnt a lot about the defeat and how difficult the National League will be. Speaking to leytonorient.com “It was a good lesson for us in a way, the defeat may have given us a kick up the backside in realising what this league is all about and how we have to play in this league”

Orient host Solihull Moors in their first fixture back at Brisbane Road since the famous pitch invasion with Colchester last season. Davis is keen for his side to use Brisbane Road to their advantage, “we have two home games now, on grass it will certainly helps us. We know what we need to improve on, we are looking forward to the home games where we want to well and pick up points”.

Orient’s first home League Fixture for last seven seasons

Davis’s men enjoyed large spells of possession on Saturday but failed to create clear cut chances with Orient’s head coach keen for his side to be adaptable during games. Speaking to East London Advertiser “it was hard to play out from the back because of the way Sutton set up, so we need to find another way of playing. Saturday outlined the importance of having a big striker up there to keep the ball and help us build up the pitch”

With over 3700 season ticket holders at the Matchroom Stadium this season, it is expected that the majority of sides will sit deep and wait for Orient to break them down. Davis is keen for his side to be better in possession, “I was disappointed we didn’t play our football when we had the time, we need to be brave and courageous in the way we are playing”. He added, “I want us to be brave and work harder to break teams down because we ended up pumping a lot of balls forward”.

Solihull Moors travel to East London on the back of a postponement against Chester City after safety concerns with the Automated Technology Group Stadium. Manager Liam McDonald was gutted that their opening fixture was cancelled, in a statement with the club website, he stated “After an impressive pre season, we were all hoping to carry that positive momentum into the new campaign and all hope the issue can be resolved quickly”.

Solihull finished 16th in the Vanarama National league in their debut season after gaining promotion from the Conference North in 2015/2016. The club was formed back in 2007 and has continued to grow since. Manager Liam McDonald took over in November 2016 after Marcus Bignot left to become Grimsby Town Manager.

• Last Season’s record – P46 W15 D10 L21  F62  A75
• Away Record last season – P23 W7 D7 L9  F27  A37

It has been a summer of change at Damson Park with 15 outs and 12 incomings, most notably former West Brom Albion, Darren Carter who was recently made captain of Moors. Carter joined from Forest Green after achieving promotion with them through the play offs last season.

Solihull’s Transfers In

Manager Liam McDonald praised the impact of his summer arrivals in their pre season results with the Moors achieving victories over Walsall, Stoke U23’s and West Brom Albion U23’s. Speaking to solihullmoorsfc.co.uk ahead of their visit to Orient tomorrow, “we had a terrific pre season and were ready physically and mentally. All of the new players have stepped up to our philosophy as a team”.

Solihull’s Pre Season Results

McDonald revealed that his side watched Orient’s 2-0 loss at Sutton on Saturday and described it as “the best possible thing to do in the circumstances, it completely refocused us on Tuesday”. He added “We though Orient played well but you only have to look back at last season’s FA Cup to see the home team cause an upset”.

However, after defeat on Saturday, McDonald is aware that Orient will be looking to grab maximum points tomorrow night, “Orient will be all the more hungry to get the points on board and we have to be focused when we arrive in Leyton. It is a big stadium and there will be 5/6000 home fans looking to put last season and Sutton behind them”.

The former Hednesford Town manager has urged the Moors fans to back their side at the Matchroom Stadium, “this is where our fans come in. I am aware that only a small number of them can make it but we need them to make noise from the start. You carried us through some difficult matches last season and we need you to start doing that again”.

With pre season favourites Tranmere drawing at Torquay, Hartlepool losing at home to Dover on Saturday, McDonald sees no reason why his side cannot expect to obtain a result on Tuesday. “I am really looking forward to this game, we will leave in good time to acclimatise to the Stadium. Dover proved at Hartlepool that there are no certainties in this league and together there is no reason why we should not expect a result tomorrow”.

Team News

Orient could name an unchanged side ahead of the visit of Solihull Moors. Ten O’s players made their competitive debuts for the O’s at Sutton United. Midfielder Craig Clay and Josh Koroma will be pushing for starts after impressing from the bench. Defender Jamie Sendles-White looks set to miss out after still regaining match fitness after his injury last term.

Solihull look set to give debuts to several of their summer signings Darren Carter, Paul Green, Luke Benbow and Connal  Trueman.

Prediction – Leyton Orient 1-1 Solihull Moors