Simpson doubles up to give O’s a lift

LEYTON Orient boss Alberto Cavasin believes his side’s big victory at fellow strugglers Colchester United can be a liberating result for the club.

A brace from Jay Simpson and Nicky Hunt’s strike helped the O’s climb out of the League Two relegation zone and leave their hosts in trouble near the foot of the table.

Cavasin said: “We put in a good performance and we know that we have to build up momentum to prove we have come out of that difficult situation and move up the league table.

“We’re all happy about this victory as it’s something very important and liberating, but we have already said we need to think about the next match.

“We played the diamond in midfield and our objective was to support our two strikers and it seemed to me this formation could be the solution.

“Many of our players have already played this formation so during the week we decided to put it into practice.”

Colchester have not won in their last 12 matches in all competitions, and head coach John McGreal was hugely disappointed with his team’s performance.

McGreal said: “I’m gutted about the result but it’s only three points and nothing more than that and I’ll be looking for ways to try and rectify it.There are no excuses for the performance.

“We had opportunities to score goals at times when it’s crucial and we’ve been conceding poor goals of late but we’ll keep working hard to put it right.

“Even though we’ve been in a dip we’ve performed well but it’s the first time this season that hasn’t happened.

“The same things are happening again in both boxes and we didn’t show enough conviction or apply ourselves well enough at both ends of the pitch.”

Orient made a great start and took an 11th-minute lead. After Colchester had failed to clear on the edge of area, Glen Kamara’s stray pass inadvertently found Simpson who clinically fired past U’s goalkeeper Sam Walker.

Simpson was denied by Walker before Hunt doubled Orient’s lead in the opening minute of the second half when he collected possession on the right and curled a low shot into the far post.

And Orient wrapped up their victory midway through the second half when Simpson found ample space just outside the U’s area and unleashed a fierce shot that flew past Walker, to complete the visitors’ crucial win.