Leyton Orient midfielder Jobi McAnuff insists his side will not let their season dwindle out ahead of their home clash with Barrow tomorrow. Orient pulled themselves nine points clear of the relegation zone after their 3-1 win at Guiseley on Good Friday but McAnuff highlights that there is still work to be done. Speaking to leytonorient.com “as a footballer you can never rest, I don’t think there ever will be a situation where you can take things for granted and not put 100% in”.

• Sit 13th on 50 points
• League Record – P40  W13  D11  L16  F49  A51
• Form in last six – W2  D2  L2

The 36 year old has been a shinning light for the East Londoners this season and is keen for his side to end the season well stating Head Coach Justin Edinburgh is the right man for it. “We have a manager who is very demanding and rightfully so. He won’t let people slack off, we really want to end the season well, put some performances in and get some good wins”.

• McAnuff has been involved in 15 of Orient’s 64 goals in all competitions (10 assists, 5 goals)

The O’s head into tomorrow’s game after back to back wins after their Easter Monday clash with Maidenhead was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. A brace from McAnuff and a David Mooney goal helped Orient to victory at Guiseley with Head coach Justin Edinburgh described the performance to leytonorient.com as “professional, efficient and controlling the game for longs periods”.

• Home League Record – P20  W6  D6  L8  F28  A24
• One win in last eight games (W1, D3  L4) – 3-0 vs Woking last time out 
• Three of last five home games have been draws
• Eight of 11 wins under Edinburgh have been away
• Orient have only won back to back home matches once since August

Assistant Coach Ross Embleton is keen for his side to look up the league and finish as high as they can following an up and down campaign in E10. Speaking to East London Advertiser “we know it hasn’t been the season everyone wanted to have but at the same time we still need to keep striving to catch teams above us”. A key for the O’s is creating momentum to start next season on the up, a statement Embleton echoes, “we have still got a month of this one left but it is about trying to build so we come back for next season with a good feeling and positivity”.

• Kept 11 league clean sheets (four at home)
• Kept two in their last three games
• First clean sheet at home in six games
• Only conceded once in last three games 
• Not kept back to back home clean sheets since August 2015

McAnuff took his goal tally to five with his brace at Guiseley and feels the back to back wins over sides at the bottom is a big step for his side. Orient have struggled with the expectation to win but after the recent victories, McAnuff is keen for his side to continue tomorrow and next season. Speaking to leytonorient.com “going to Guiseley and winning was a big performance, the mentality to go and win a game we are expected to win, moving forward is going to be key. We have had a year to get to grips with things and to see what the league is about. Handling expectation is massive going forward”.

• Failed to scored in 13 league games
• Scored six in last two games
• Scored in five of the last six home matches (0-1 loss, Torquay, 13/03/18)
• Failed to score in two of their last four games

With extra rest after Monday’s postponement, Embleton illustrates that despite Barrow sitting just outside the relegation zone, Orient will be in for a tough afternoon. Speaking to leytonorient.com “it will be a difficult game, we need to make sure we prepare properly. it is a little bit similar to the Guiseley game, teams we are coming up against are in a difficult position and fighting for lives but we can’t take our foot off the gas, we need to be ruthless and add to their woes”

• Conceded 32/51 league goals in first half 
• 11 between 1-15 mins and 14 between 31-45 minutes
• Seven of the last ten conceded have been in first 15 or last 15 minutes of games
• 14/23 conceded under Edinburgh and nine of the last 14 conceded have been in the second half

Barrow extended their winless run to four games with a 3-1 home defeat to AFC Fylde on Tuesday evening. Nathan Waterston levelled for Barrow after Jonny Smith put Fylde ahead but a third defeat in six games came after Danny Rowe and Serhat Tasdemir netted in the North.

• Sit 20th on 41 points
• League Record – P39  W9  D14  L16  F44  A53
• Form in last six – W1  D2  L3
• Last win 1-0 at Maidenhead, 17/02/18
• Two league wins since Boxing Day, W2  D7  L5

Assistant manager Jamie Day thought his side battled well in the first half but defensive frailties cost his side once more as they sit precariously outside the relegation zone on goal difference.  Speaking to http://www.nwemail.co.uk “It’s the same old story, I thought first half we played really well, pressed them and were on the front foot. But at the minute, we’re giving away some really silly goals. Teams are not earning the goals they are getting and we’re getting punished at the minute”.

• Conceded 32/53 league goals in the second (18/29 away)
• Conceded 12 between 46-60 and 12 between 76-90
• 12 of the last 17 conceded have been in the second half

Barrow’s remaining games

With his side looking over their shoulders at Torquay’s and Solihull’s form, Day knows that if his side are to beat the drop the mistakes need to be eradicated quickly, “if you keep making mistakes like we are then you end up where we are in the league”. Barrow have a busy end of the season run in and Day urged his players to fight for the points they need to survive. Speaking to nwemail.co.uk “I’ve said before everyone has to pull their weight now. In the remaining games everyone’s got to pull their weight, earn the right for the short and get the points we need to get us over the line”.

• Scored 26/44 league goals in the first half
• 13/25 away have been in the first half – including nine between 31-45 minutes – most in division
• Nine of the last 12 scored have been in the first half

Wins are what is needed at the moment for Barrow and Day is clear that his side need to be more ruthless in attack, “it’s catch 22, because we need to be a bit riskier to get the wins but we’re making stupid mistakes and getting punished. Perhaps we’ve got to take more risks going forward, against Boreham Wood and Dover, the final pass let us down when we needed it”.

• Failed to score in 11 league games (four away)
• Failed in two of their last three games
• Scored in four of their last five away matches (0-0, Boreham Wood, 30/03/18)
• Scored in 13 of their last 15 away games
• Not scored more than once since New Years Day – 13 games – 3-3 vs Wrexham

Barrow have kept two clean sheets in their last three games but Day emphasised “we can’t keep relying on clean sheets as a team and not conceding because we are going to concede and we are going to make mistakes. Both ends of the field have got to add to it”.

• Kept nine league clean sheets (five away)
• Kept back to back away clean sheets (both 0-0’s)
• Kept three in last four away games
• Not kept three away clean sheets in a row since 2015

Ady Pennock’s men are definitely better away than at home and in the meeting with Orient, the first goal will be key. The Bluebirds have taken just four points from a possible 51 (17 games) when conceding first with Day clear that his side need to overcome that obstacle. “It’s disappointing that we conceded and then we seem to go into our shell and go on the back foot. Where we are in the league plays a part in that but we’ve got to have character to get us through that and get us through the remaining games”.

• Away League Record – P19  W6  D4  L9  F25  A29
• Unbeaten in last two – W1  D1
• Two wins in last four (1-0 at Maidstone and Maidenhead)
• Nine of the 13 points collected since Boxing Day have come away)
• Their last seven league wins have come away  from home

Team News

Leyton Orient will be without the injured trio of James Dayton, Alex Lawless and Matt Harrold. Charlie Lee has resumed full training and nearing fitness. David Mooney will be pushing for a recall to the starting 11 after netting off the bench at Guiseley last time out.

Dan Jones and Nathan Waterston are hoping to retain their places after they were recalled in Tuesday’s night defeat to AFC Fylde. Asa Hall and Bedsente Gomis dropped out while Jack Barthram, Jordan White and Harry Panayiotou are awaiting their chance to start.

Prediction – Leyton Orient 3-1 Barrow