Leyton Orient saw their two-point lead at the top of the National League cut in half as they played out a 0-0 stalemate against Barnet at The Hive on Saturday.
Justin Edinburgh made one change from the side that beat AFC Fylde on Tuesday night with Alex Lawless making his first start since February 2nd, replacing the injured Jamie Turley at right wing back.
Spurred on by 1,811 travelling fans, the O’s started brightly and could have had a penalty just eight minutes in. Josh Koroma’s mazy run into the penalty area was stopped by Daniel Sweeney, but referee Sam Purkiss waved away the appeals.
At the other end, Barnet looked threatening on the counter attack and their pacey forward line of Shaquille Coulthirst, Wes Fonguck and Ephron Mason-Clark were beginning to find gaps down the sides of Orient’s back three.
Target Sighted
It was Fonguck who came closest for the Bees in the 18th minute when he raced away from the O’s backline, facing up to Dean Brill one-on-one who stood firm and produced a magnificent save to keep Barnet at bay.
Josh Coulson has made a habit out of scoring important goals from set pieces in recent weeks and would have grabbed another, had Mason-Clark not been on hand to divert his headed effort off the line in the 28th minute.
The O’s went close again just minutes later. A fine passing move ended with Lawless picking the ball up in space down the right, before whipping a cross onto the head of his opposite wing back Joe Widdowson, whose powerful attempt fell just the wrong side of the post.
Fitness Tests
Orient were dealt a blow at half-time when skipper Jobi McAnuff had to be substituted, with last season’s captain Charlie Lee replacing him in the centre of midfield.
Injuries would become somewhat a theme of the second half, as numerous Barnet players went down requiring treatment. The injury stoppages did little to help the game flow and as a result chances were at a premium.
The Bees came closest to snatching all three points in the 77th minute when substitute Medy Elito hit the post. Elito was slid in down the right hand side and despite being slightly off balance hit a shot towards the near post that looked to have Brill beaten, only for the woodwork to come to Orient’s rescue.
Chalked Off
The match seemed to be fizzling out as the clock ticked down to 90 minutes. However, five minutes of added time signalled by the fourth official seemed to re-invigorate the O’s who went in search of a late winner.
Once again, they had appeals for a penalty turned down two minutes into added time. James Dayton got ahead of his man in the box, going down under the challenge of Callum Reynolds only for the referee to book Dayton for simulation.
There was more late drama in the fifth minute of stoppage time. Lee launched one of his trademark long throws into the Barnet penalty area, where Dan Happe was on hand to flick the ball towards Coulson who headed the ball into the net to spark delirium in the away end.
However, the O’s fans joy was short lived once they realised the assistant referee had his flag up for offside.
Quick Turnaround
The result leaves Orient one-point clear of second place Salford, although they still have two games in-hand over their north-West rivals. Next, the O’s make the journey to Hayes Lane where they will face Bromley on Tuesday night.
