The opponent: Leyton Orient
Seems like forever since I have had to do one of these for an away match, probably not all that long but long enough for the withdrawal symptoms to kick in, I must be taking this far too seriously. As everyone is so scared of playing us it will be nice to get a game on. My biggest hope is we carry the recent form forwards and return from the East End of London with 3 points in the bag. Best of luck to those making the journey, sadly I have to skip this one. As ever, it seems to be have been fairly eventful at SN1 since the last time we were here. The word administration seemed to appear out of nowhere (Chris Wise?), we have had offers/enquiries in for players, and nobody in, but alarmingly, the gaffer seems to remain positive, upbeat and generally relaxed about the future. My guess is he knows more than what he is letting on, either that or he is starting to get a grips with keeping things in-house, leaving the STFC laundry behind closed doors, where it belongs. 6 weeks ago Di Canio was saying that we looked like a team that he could not be sure that would not be in the relegation mix up come the end of the season! I think one poster has mentioned we are mathematically safe now, so that’s one problem sorted for Paolo.
So, 2 hours and 20 minutes and 90 miles away (as the AA route planner flies), the unstoppable circus rolls on to Leyton Orient. Today aside, I will always hold a special place in my heart for The O’s, for it was they who condemned Poxford to NON LEAGUE FOOTBALL a few years back. I remember the chant of “Orient, Orient” ringing round the Town End, the foreign players must have been somewhat confused, but it was a good day and with a bit of luck, a day we can look forward to in the near future, and the Pox can return to their rightful home alongside Histon, Forest Green and Tamworth. Today’s destination, Brisbane Road, is officially known as the Matchroom Stadium after club chairman Barry Hearn's sports promotion company. Hearn became chairman in 1995 after the club was put on sale for £5 by then-chairman Tony Wood whose coffee growing business in Rwanda had gone somewhat tits-up in the country's civil war. What a bargain, I don’t think you can even buy 20 fags for that nowadays. I found out some quite random information doing my research for this one, so rather than the normal formed then approach I found out the following utterly irrelevant information. The most internationally capped player for The O’s was a fella by the name of Tunji Banjo (Nigeria 7 Caps), with a name like that I am surprised he never tried out for our neighbours up the A420. Back in 1912, Orient competed in the Dubonnet Cup which was held in Paris, now you would expect the opposition to be PSG, maybe even Marseille, but no, it was Millwall. I would have thought The Bayonet Cup would have been better suited. Leyton Orient’s most famous fan would have to be Andrew Lloyd Webber. I have always thought he had something of the night about him to be honest, despite his ability to be able to pen a tune or two. The only other person of any note to support them is comedian Bob Mills. There are a fair few famous names that come from the Leytonstone area, including David Beckham, Damon Albarn, Graham Gooch, Jonathan Woss, and legendary cook, Fanny Cradock. At the start of this thread I had no idea the word fanny would appear.
What are they saying about us? – (Care of Twitter due to lack of Swindon discussion on their forums)
Kane Midwinter @KaneMidwinter
Might have to go Swindon game tomo just to get a glimpse of Di Canio! #lofc
Sam Newman @SamNewman_
#lofc's next 3 league games can really shape our season, Swindon tomorrow, Stevenage saturday& Tranmere next week, need to pick a few wins!
Leyton Orient Last 6 – WLDLDW (Currently 15th on 39 points)
The Threat – Irish striker David Mooney currently leads the way with 11 goals so far this term.
A Warm Welcome Too – Scott Cuthbert. It seems the big eared one is injured and possibly out for a while. Shame.
The irrelevant stats – The O’s have not managed to keep a clean sheet in the last 7 games, hopefully something we can expose. Interestingly, they have not had a 0-0 scoreline for 56 games. So far this season they have won 7, drawn 1 and lost 6 of their home games.
Head to Head – Leyton Orient 27 wins, Swindon Town 26 Wins, and 23 draws. Hopefully we can even that up tonight.
The Odds – Orient 3/1 Draw 5/2 Swindon 10/11 (Betfred) With James Collins being in the news over the last couple of days surely now is a good time to wedge on him for the 1st goal, if he starts. Best price for this is 5/1 with Bet365. I will have my random outside bet on Aden Flint this week, best priced at 25/1 with Skybet. Couldn’t find any prices for that lazy French bastard (allegedly) Tehoue anywhere.
The Son Says – He has kept it simple, a 2-0 victory for the Town. Good lad
The Prediction - The good form looks set to continue for me. 3-1 victory to the town, with goals from Flint, Ritchie and Collins. Crowd of 3’992 with 480 representing us.
And Finally – Alfred Hitchcock was born at 517 High Road, Leytonstone, on 13th August 1899. To mark 100 years since his birth, and to commemorate the director's link with the area, 17 mosaics were installed in the entrance corridors of Leytonstone tube station. They were made in vitreous glass tesserae, using the reverse method, by Greenwich Mural Workshop. The work required some 80,000 tiles, took seven months to complete, and the final installation took place during April 2001. I bet those tiles have been pissed on by many a drunk cockney.
