A look at another of the six teams who are new to Sky Bet League Two in 2015/16.
Manager: TBC
Last Season: Sky Bet League One, 23rd.
OVERVIEW
Less than a year after coming within a penalty shoot-out of reaching the Sky Bet Championship, Leyton Orient find themselves back in the basement division of the Football League after a disastrous 2014/15 campaign.
Under new owners, the O’s lacked any sort of stability – both on and off the pitch.
The popular Russell Slade resigned in September to become the new boss at Cardiff City, which meant Kevin Nugent took caretaker charge for a month. Mauro Milanese was then appointed as permanent manager in October, but his spell lasted only 43 days, with Fabio Liverani then taking the reigns until the end of the season.
Incredibly, Liverani has now departed the Matchroom Stadium and the O’s are searching for yet another manager, who will be charged with the task of making them a force to be reckoned with in 2015/16.
On the pitch last term, it was no surprise given the off-field turmoil that Orient struggled throughout and were eventually relegated. The O’s lost 21 games – a dozen of which were on home soil, whilst they failed to score 17 times, despite boasting experienced frontmen such as Chris Dagnall and Darius Henderson.
WE’VE MET BEFORE
You have to rewind nine years for our last meeting with Leyton Orient and it was a memorable occasion for the O’s as they won 1-0 in North Nottinghamshire thanks to Matt Lockwood’s late penalty.
In fact, Orient have won each of the last five meetings. Our last success against them was a 3-2 win on home soil way back in October 2001 – our goals that day coming through Lee Williamson, Craig Disley and Chris Greenacre.
Our last six meetings with Leyton Orient are as follows:
Stags 0-1 Leyton Orient, April 2006, One Call Stadium
Leyton Orient 3-1 Stags, October 2005, Matchroom Stadium
Leyton Orient 2-1 Stags, May 2005, Matchroom Stadium
Stags 0-1 Leyton Orient, November 2004, One Call Stadium
Leyton Orient 3-1 Stags, January 2004, Matchroom Stadium
Stags 1-1 Leyton Orient, August 2003, One Call Stadium
CONNECTIONS
Arguably the most notable player to have appeared for both ourselves and Leyton Orient is Wayne Corden.
A popular figure during his time with us, Corden was part of our team which won promotion from this level in 2001/02 and then reached the Division Three play-off final in 2003/04 – losing on penalties to Huddersfield Town. He joined Orient after a spell at Scunthorpe United and made 84 appearances for them.
Corden’s former team-mate, Iyseden Christie, can also list both clubs amongst his old employers. He enjoyed a three-year stint in East London, sandwiched between two spells with us
Other players to have turned out for both clubs include Warren Hackett, Ian Juryeff, Mark Peters, Mark Smalley and Chris Tate.
STADIUM
Over the past decade, the Matchroom Stadium, commonly known as Brisbane Road, has undergone extensive redevelopment work and is now a relatively modern all-seater stadium.
Visiting supporters are usually housed in a seated section of the Main Stand which runs the length of the 18-yard box and can house up to 1,000 spectators. A couple of supporting pillars may obstruct your view of the pitch from this stand.
