Independent Leyton Orient Forum

Too defensive in our set up. Players do not seem motivated to show initiative and attack* Opponents push us back. We lose.
Repeat
Repeat

* Yes, there are flashes of this and one such actually led to a goal I recall.

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

Why wait until Christmas? We’ve had nearly 18 months of tedious nondescript rubbish.

Good news is we are the experts at the sideways pass
Crab football at its best!

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

cockhat wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 pm

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

It breaks my heart to say this but I agree . Unlike last season there's no excuses this season . We now have a good squad of players . On paper , with the attacking threat we carry we should be in the top 8 by now . But of course they play on grass , not paper .

RedDwarf 1881 wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 8:31 pm

cockhat wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 pm

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

It breaks my heart to say this but I agree . Unlike last season there's no excuses this season . We now have a good squad of players . On paper , with the attacking threat we carry we should be in the top 8 by now . But of course they play on grass , not paper .

Omg, all I can say is that your heart must be easy to break to come out with that nonsense. Time for you to man up.

LeytonOstone wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 5:24 pm With the squad we have we should be doing far better. Still living off the back of 24/25 season. Time for him to go.

I don’t believe we have the squad that everybody say is strong. Several players are not up to Level 1 at the moment. They include the following Kabia . Scarlett,Hayden. Morris Dogba Wellens and even Idris. RW keeps on about fitness yet most of these players all had pre season and 12 games in the league to prove fitness.He keeps moving players around and changing the attack which at the moment is weakBurton today had only 5 subs . I honestly think that the players are losing their confidence in trying to achieve what RW is asking them to do.

cockhat wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 pm

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

Purely out of curiosity , who is available who you would like ?

RedDwarf 1881 wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 9:05 pm

cockhat wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 pm

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

Purely out of curiosity , who is available who you would like ?

Without research I really don’t know who is available. That would be known if and when RW is relieved of his duties.
I’d be happy with someone along the lines of Dave Challinor - although unlikely. But certainly wouldn’t like a Robbie Savage type. If you have any names let me know and I’ll say yes or no.

Bye Ritchie. You never encourage, always blame someone or something else. Send us out with 10 men when you pick nepo baby.

Look in mirror son, at present you are the biggest problem. Get a grip or ship.out.

RedDwarf 1881 wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 9:05 pm

cockhat wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 7:47 pm

EliotNes wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 6:04 pm I'll give him until Christmas. If we aren't in the top 10 then, I think Gandler & Big Nige will make the change. Though who we'll get is anyone's guess.

You’ll have good managers falling over themselves to get a job here!

Purely out of curiosity , who is available who you would like ?

Add another unlikely choice Nigel Clough - he would love working with this squad and board of directors. There would also be applications from managers in post elsewhere.

For those on this board who retain the little Leyton Orient mentality promoted by the asset stripper. Wake up! We have on paper a bloody good squad that are not performing. We are a stable club with high aspirations. Plenty of Managers would fancy the gig, get real.

For me it’s some of the signings that we’ve made that I would blame Richie for, along with the fact that he keeps starting Charlie who is not worth a starting place. Hayden has been a massive disappointment, I really thought a player with so much Premier League experience would stand out in L1. Last week against Blackpool I didn’t even realise he was playing until just before HT when he got injured.

Has it got to the stage, where we don’t mind losing if it leads to the manager getting the sack

I can sum it up like this. I left London for NSW Australia in July after nearly 50 years of watching the O’s. I was looking forward to staying up and watching games with a beer at midnight on a Saturday night. After three games I gave up on that and just went to bed and set my alarm for 3am to check the scores.

For the last few games I haven’t even done that, I just wake up around 7 or 8 and look at my phone and sigh. It’s that bad.

My last season at Brissy was dogshit tbh, and this season is going the same way. Wellens should have gone at the end of last season and I can’t see us improving while he’s still in charge.

Stowaway wrote: Sat Oct 24, 2026 11:11 pm
Wellens should have gone at the end of last season and I can’t see us improving while he’s still in charge.

Yep. I'm tired of seeing the same problems, week-in week-out. Richie is giving the fans nothing to look forward to.

I never thought id say this , but Im beginning to think Richie should go

The FA Cup tie against Harborough Town has that same danger as Maldon did for Fletcher all those years ago. The board wanted cup runs this season for budgetary reasons (as RW mentioned himself) so if the unthinkable were to happen and lose to a non-league side at home in the first round it might be curtains. No pressure...

I understand the need for a back 5 to give us some defensive solidity after a ropey start to the season. The obvious starting line up with a 5 was Stevens Gilchrist Forrester Chinedu Morris. It’s a no brainier. But to get WJ1 another game closer to his contract with extension he plays Stevens out of position at CB, Gilchrist out of position again at LCB and then Chinedu at LWB.

And even after culpability in both goals, he stays on, Morris gets hooked and we’re told we can’t wait for Boniface to come back, as though the problems were all down that side.

I’m done with the situation. As good as Richie has been for us, it’s over.

gshaw wrote: Sun Oct 25, 2026 12:19 am The FA Cup tie against Harborough Town has that same danger as Maldon did for Fletcher all those years ago. The board wanted cup runs this season for budgetary reasons (as RW mentioned himself) so if the unthinkable were to happen and lose to a non-league side at home in the first round it might be curtains. No pressure...

There’s no way we can lose to them. We could field the whole Wellens family and beat them.

Is that really the best Richie can do?
30 man squad
3 months into the season
Absolutely 100% fcking pathetic
He should go now

Hoover Attack wrote: Sun Oct 25, 2026 12:28 am

gshaw wrote: Sun Oct 25, 2026 12:19 am The FA Cup tie against Harborough Town has that same danger as Maldon did for Fletcher all those years ago. The board wanted cup runs this season for budgetary reasons (as RW mentioned himself) so if the unthinkable were to happen and lose to a non-league side at home in the first round it might be curtains. No pressure...

There’s no way we can lose to them. We could field the whole Wellens family and beat them.

Harborough Town will be around 14/1 to beat us , its their cup final and thats where my tenner will be punted on

I'm coming round to getting rid of wellens. It's wild that Charlie is getting game time with the players available, full backs as wing backs is awful, our big signings, kabia, who can't play up front on his own and Hayden, who's legs have gone, were his picks. He's had the backing and the time and we're not progressing

gshaw wrote: Sun Oct 25, 2026 12:19 am The FA Cup tie against Harborough Town has that same danger as Maldon did for Fletcher all those years ago. The board wanted cup runs this season for budgetary reasons (as RW mentioned himself) so if the unthinkable were to happen and lose to a non-league side at home in the first round it might be curtains. No pressure...

Keeley’s header vs Oldham saved our season …

Wellens is a great manager, but a poor leader. For him to succeed he needs someone above him to hold him to account and intervene when he's making bad decisions and demonstrating poor judgement (such as starting Wellens Jr yesterday).

Something needs to change. Even if the club was to recognise all of this, I reckon Wellens is too far gone now and would resent any change. So that just leaves him going as the only viable option.

All of this is nothing new, and was being discussed last season. The best time for some sort of change or intervention was then. The second best time is now. And the worst option is to delay in the hope that continuing as we are will suddenly result in a change of fortune.