Football, particularly in the most lucrative echelons, exists as a somewhat sacred sector. In times of desperate or widespread public interest, football tends to adopt its own unique ways of demonstrating its response.
With the use of minute silences, the wearing of black armbands and specially dedicated celebrations, the football world demonstrates its recognition whilst still continuing to produce captivating contests and enthralling entertainment.
In the process of this, football has developed a special immunity to the effects of the events in life and society, whereby it continues to operate despite current state of affairs.
Changing Times
However, amid the mass disorder caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the sporting world witnessed a change in times of such, with distinct disruptions to football occurring on a global scale.
From the banning of pre-match handshakes to socially distanced celebrations, football associations around the world have explored and are continuing to explore various ways in which football can continue to take place whilst not compromising personal and public health.
In March, the Football Association became the first in the world to succumb to the long-term effects of the pandemic, to the extent where final resolution on whether to abandon the disrupted football seasons was actioned.
Among other updates to Non-League and Grassroots football, the FA announced the 2019-20 season for the third tier and below of the Women’s Pyramid of Football was to be expunged and declared ‘null and void’, with promotions and relegations no longer taking place.
Optimistic Signs
Unfortunately, this decision brought an abrupt end to Leyton Orient WFC’s Division One South East 2019-20 campaign, along with their aim of attaining promotion to the Southern Premier Division.
Despite the season ending in disappointing fashion, Orient’s 17 victories, six defeats and one stalemate leave manager, Chris Brayford and his side with plenty positives to ponder. Their campaign, lasting only eight months, manufactured promising signs which bode well for the East London side’s promotion challenge in the 2020-21 season.
In the opening game of the 2019-20 season, Orient registered their first win with a fine 5-1 thrashing of Cambridge City. In typical curtain-raising fashion, this set the scene and provided O’s fans with some food for thought for what their side’s goal tally would potentially resemble.
In the games that followed, Orient developed a positive playing style which sought to relentlessly attack the opposition. This approach aimed to produce an effective form of defence as well as one that generated goals. For the vast majority of their fixtures, this worked to good effect.
Good Scoring Record
With a total of 67 goals in 24 games, the O’s demonstrated expert proficiency in finding the back of the net in all competitions. Although the amount of goals among the 14 different goal-scorers was considerably sparse, outstanding recognition must be granted to two goal-scorers in particular.
Orient vice-captain and striker, Sophie Le Marchand, registered 17 goals in 22 appearances in a campaign which saw her top both the club’s goal-scoring and appearances tally. In something of a resurgent season compared to its predecessors, Le Marchand’s exemplary performances proved to be the pivotal difference her side benefited from, on many occasions.
Closely following Le Marchand on the goal-scoring tally is fellow forward, Otesha Charles. The 2019/20 season was her first in Orient colours, with the Guyanese international netting 16 goals in 14 appearances.
With Le Marchand and Charles occupying almost half of the total goals scored by the O’s last season, the attacking duo were vital cogs in the Orient machine.
Star Players
In her post-season assessment, club captain, Danielle Griffiths, heaped plenty praise on the pair along with midfielder, Hayley Barton who was another integral figure with a club joint highest total of 22 appearances.
“Sophie [Le Marchand], Hayley [Barton] and Otesha [Charles] have been superstars for us but as have the rest of the girls who work hard week in week out”, Griffiths told leytonorient.com.
In addition to the high number of goals they scored, the goals conceded in all competitions is also something that is significant to note. Orient conceded 34 goals in 24 games which averaged at 1.4 goals per game.
Although that statistic may not be good reading for Orient’s defence, it is important to point out that the goals they scored averaged at 2.8 goals per game – which is two times more than the conceded goals.
‘Successful Style’
It is a statistic that indicates they achieved considerable success in their playing style, which is often difficult to execute effectively. Albeit to the detriment of keeping clean sheets, the O’s outscored their opponents on a fairly consistent basis. By counteracting the goals they conceded, wins and vital points were frequently registered.
Despite the fine line between risk and reward, if they are able to replicate a tendency to score more than they let in, the O’s stand in good stead to compete to win the necessary amount of games for promotion next season.
Orient’s second league defeat of the season was inflicted by an unforgiving Cambridge United side, back in December. Simply beaten by the better team on the day, the usually free-scoring O’s produced nothing by way of goals and eventually conceded a 3-0 loss on a torrid afternoon in Cambridgeshire.
Mentally Strong
Following a game ending with a high margin of victory, it would be very familiar to see teams on the wrong end of such a result to draw upon the adversities they encountered surrounding the fixture. ‘The playing surface wasn’t quite up to standard’, ‘the players were suffering from a little fatigue’, ‘we had a number of key absentees’ – to name a probable few.
However, this approach was swiftly avoided by Brayford after Orient’s disappointment away to Cambridge, demonstrating their ambitious mentality in the process.
“Last week was very disappointing on a lot of levels but if all those issues are crammed into one game then it can be a positive in the long run as we’ll certainly learn from it”, he said.
Ahead of Orient’s first game after the Cambridge United defeat, which was due to be after the season restart in the New Year, he added:
“There is an old saying that the best teams are the ones where the best players are the hardest workers and we need to embody that.”
In contrast to the values expressed in this old saying, football commentators and critics are typically most impressed by the exceptional tactical prowess and ingenious qualities possessed by the elites of football management, as well as their ability to effectively exert these attributes on their squads.
The Winning Blueprint
In a fashion which could be likened to simply ‘stripping it back’, Brayford has sought to alternatively instil general practices into his Orient squad, the basic fundamentals that can go a long way if applied consistently.
This is the blueprint the O’s are continually following to develop the cutting-edge needed to outclass their division and propel themselves to promotion.
As the popular proverb goes: ‘actions speak louder than words’. On the pitch, words converted to action speak even louder. It is not enough to just say how good you need to be, you must also perform at that desired level.
In the same way, it would be all good and well for this Orient team to say all the right things but ultimately, it has to be applied and actioned on the pitch.
In spite of their rock-solid mentality, things didn’t always go their way last season. Rather humbly, wins were never guaranteed and there was considerable polarity between their overall results.
Blips Or Trends?
For O’s fans, defeats such as the double 6-1 cup exits to Portsmouth, as well as victories such as the 14-0 win against Burgess Hill Town, may spring to mind.
These games, especially in the chronology they appear, almost seem like inconsistent blips in a general trend. However, they represent a great deal more. They demonstrate the ‘never say die’ spirit adopted by Orient, which so carefully binds them together in face of any opponent.
This spirit was fittingly summed up by Le Marchand after their 3-0 win at home to AFC Basildon in September. Speaking to leytonorient.com she reflected on what was a season defining game for the O’s.
“I think we learnt a lot about ourselves as a team, today. We learnt that we are fighters, we are resilient and that we have a growing team spirit that will only get stronger as the season progresses.”
Positive Outlook
October was a period in the season which perfectly encapsulated the attitude she alluded to. With four wins and two defeats sandwiched in between, it was a microcosm of their tight-knit togetherness and rigid team spirit, which was ultimately reflected in Orient’s performances week in, week out.
When defeat stumbled across their path, the obstacle posed was always swiftly alleviated with a win the next time out. For a team who are continually setting sights on mounting a serious promotion challenge, bouncing back from setbacks is a necessity by nature for the O’s.
With the 2019-20 season cut-short, it will now never be represented in records to a complete extent. Despite this, Leyton Orient will have plenty aspects of their campaign to reflect on and learn from.
News regarding details and arrangements for the 2020-21 seasons of the Women’s Pyramid of Football, are yet to be established. When much more normal times are restored and Division One South East returns to action, Leyton Orient will be hoping to replicate their good habits from last season to hopefully gain their long-awaited promotion.
