Leyton Orient head coach Justin Edinburgh is fully aware of the threat reigning Champions Brackley will be when they visit the Saints in the FA Trophy Quarter Final on Saturday. The O’s travel to St James Park looking to knock the current holders out but Edinburgh highlights they won’t let their defence go easy. Speaking to East London Advertiser “they’ll be keen to retain their trophy. Now they are in the quarter finals of the competition again, make no bones about it, this will be a tough game for us”.

• Sit 3rd in National League
• Winless in last two games
• Four wins in last eight games – W4  D1  L3

FA Trophy Run 2018/2019 Season

The O’s head to Brackley on the back of 1-0 home defeat to Maidenhead last Saturday. Adrian Clifton’s second half effort was enough to see Orient drop to third in the division leaving Edinburgh disappointed with his sides performance. Speaking to leytonorient.com “we can’t look at anybody else than ourselves, we came up short. We haven’t gone and imposed ourselves in the second half like we should have done”.

Orient’s Last 6 Results

After a productive first half of the season, Orient have struggled for form in 2019, picking up just four wins; two in the FA Trophy. Following the defeat to Maidenhead, midfielder Charlie Lee was quick to look ahead and concentrate on his side regaining their consistency for the end of season push. Speaking to leytonorient.com “we’ve got to look forward to next week now. It’s happened, we’ve got to see how we bounce back, we have done it well this year. Now it’s time to try and get a bit more consistent”.

• Failed to score in nine games this season
• Scored in three of their last four
• Only scored seven goals in 2019
• Failed to score in two of their last four away games

It has been a tough two weeks for the Orient who have gone from top of the National League to third, four points behind the lead. Expectation was high against Maidenhead with the return of Jay Simpson but after falling behind, they were unable to find a route back in. Edinburgh highlights it is about staying in the moment and stated to East London Advertiser “it is about not losing focus or looking ahead. I have quickly pick the group up and we need to reflect on it and understand it”.

• Kept 17 clean sheets this season
• No clean sheet in last two
• Kept clean sheet in all three trophy games this season
• No clean sheet in last two away games but two in their last four

Orient exited the trophy at this stage last season and being just three games from a potential Wembley date, Lee is keen for his side to take their opportunity. Lee who started in the 1-0 win at Wrexham in Round Two stated to leytonorient.com “we are excited about the FA Trophy, we all know what comes at the end if you get to the final. It is a massive opportunity for the boys that probably not luck enough to play in finals. We are excited for the next one and the boys are hungry to put the result behind us”.

• 26 league places between sides
• Only one of Orient’s eight trophy games have gone to a replay

Brackley are the third team Orient have faced from a lower division in this seasons FA Trophy and go into the clash at St James Park as favourites. Assistant coach Ross Embleton is keen for his side to produce a performance but knows it won’t be easy. Speaking to the O’s Show “they won it last year, they are on a good run this season in terms of their league status and what they are aiming to achieve. They have a number of real good player who we are fully aware about. It’s not going to be easy but we need to go there very focused on getting further and at the same stage put a level of performance we are accustomed to”

• Away Record This Season – P18  W8  D6  L4  F25  A15
• No win in last two – D1  L1
• Only won one of their last six – W1 D2  L3
• Won four of their five away FA Trophy games

Team News

Orient look set to rest first team regulars Macauley Bonne, Craig Clay and Jobi McAnuff. Marvin Ekpiteta, Josh Coulson and James Dayton could be involved after returning from injury. Striker Jay Simpson should start at Brackley alongside Matt Harrold while Jordan Maquire-Drew, Dale Gorman and Myles Judd are set to be involved.

Last Time Out – 16/02/2019 – Leyton Orient 0-1 Maidenhead

Starting 11 vs Maidenhead

Prediction – Brackley Town 2-1 Leyton Orient