Our proud history: An open letter to Mr Becchetti

Dear Mr Becchetti,

I have to confess, when you glided in to your first press conference as the new owner of Leyton Orient Football Club, I liked you.

Francisco Becchetti 

With your piercing eyes and your brooding charm, you reminded me a bit of Gary Oldman in Bram Stoker's Dracula.

You said that one of the things that attracted you to Orient was our proud history. You also said that you wouldn't put a timescale on the success you craved; that you would be patient. That was sensible. That was nice.

But I'm sorry to say, Mr Becchetti, that recent events have made me question whether all those nice things you said were actually true.

A quick history lesson

Now, I'm very conscious that there are all sorts of rumours and accusations flying around about the exact circumstances that led to Russell Slade's departure last week, but what does seem clear is that at some point around seven games into the season you let it be known that the manager's job was under imminent threat if results were not to improve quickly.

And that really upsets me. Because if – as you said – you truly appreciated Orient's proud history and the DNA of the club you bought, you wouldn't have done that.

After all, it only takes a cursory glance at Leyton Orient: The Complete Record by Neilson N Kaufman, The Centenary Handbook by Neilson N Kaufman or perhaps The Men Who Made Leyton Orient FC by Neilson N Kaufman to understand that – historically speaking – Orient do not kneejerk their managers out of a job at the merest hint of a few mediocre results.

Tommy Taylor, for example, spent five years in the job, despite nearly taking Orient into the Conference twice. As a consequence fans were rewarded with two play-off finals and the opportunity to watch 157 different midfielders in the space of a few seasons.

After securing promotion to League One in 2005/06 Martin Ling looked like he was going to take the club straight back down again for the majority of the following season. But chairman Barry Hearn showed loyalty to the manager, who eventually kept us up then took us to the summit of League One by Christmas 2007.

God knows, even Paul Brush was given two years, despite consistently inciting performances from the very depths of hell and signing Carl Hutchings

He's got no hair... 

Which brings me to Russell Slade – the manager you were very fortunate to inherit, Mr Becchetti. This is a man who in his four and a bit seasons with Leyton Orient saved us from relegation once, missed out on the play-offs by one position twice, drew with Arsenal in the fifth round of the FA Cup, and got us to within one penalty kick of the Championship. All without spending a single penny on transfer fees.

And what you should find particularly interesting is that in-between all that Russell Slade had a shocker of a season in 2011/12. Pretty much any other club would have sacked their manager before Christmas with the same run of results.

But I like to think we're not like pretty much any other club. Barry Hearn had the balls to stick with his man throughout that torrid time – and the rewards were plain to see.

And so to this season. Russell Slade didn't become a bad manager in seven games. In fact – and here's another bit of history for you, Mr Becchetti – the start to the season is entirely consistent with every other one in Slade's managerial career apart from the last. His teams always start appallingly. And then he turns it round. That's his thing.

Your club

So, Mr Becchetti, I don't know what would have happened if Russell Slade had stayed in his job. Hell, he'd have probably gone to Cardiff even if you hadn't hung the Sword of Damocles over his head.

But I do know this: the last few weeks have felt pretty unedifying as an Orient fan.

I don't want Orient to feel like any other club. I want success, sure, but not at any price.

I want us to remain a club staffed by decent, honourable people. A club where this year over 200 fans travel to northern France to pay respects at the graves of the three Orient players who lost their lives in the Battle of the Somme. A club where a player who missed a crucial play-off final penalty joins supporters in the bar post-match to apologise and commiserate. A genuine community club.

Which brings me on to ex-CEO Matt Porter. Most importantly, Matt was a fan of Orient. Always was. The fact that you apparently asked him to resign his position on the board and then today contradicted yourself by saying his position was always a "transitional" one (first we've heard of it!) really does make me question whether you truly appreciate who this club is and what it stands for.

Francisco Becchetti 

And so, a word of advice to you, Mr Becchetti, delivered by way of laborious metaphor (yeah, better get used to that if you're going to carry on reading this blog): You may have the brooding charm of Gary Oldman's Dracula, but that doesn't mean you have to go around ripping out people's throats with your teeth.

Lots of love,

Matt xxx

Leyton Orient play-off final team 2001: Where are they now?

Eleven brave, talented warriors took to the pitch at the Millennium Stadium on 21 May 2001 for the Division Three play-off final. Unfortunately they were all wearing Blackpool shirts. 

Just kidding: there was actually a fair degree of guts and guile in that Orient side. Just not quite as much as Blackpool. Here's what the Orient players have been up to since...

The starting XI

Ashley Bayes

Who? Brilliant shot-stopping goalkeeper who quite possibly may have been a vampire, such was his aversion to crosses. Appeared to play every single game with an imaginary rope tethering him to his own goal line.
Where is he now? Goalkeeping coach at AFC Wimbledon. Released by Orient at the end of the 2001/02 season, Ash had spells at League of Ireland side Bohemian, Woking, Hornchurch, Grays Athletic, Crawley Town and Basingstoke Town. He also spent three seasons on the bench at Stevenage, although he put his time to good use.

Matthew Joseph

Who? Reliable, hard-working and classy right back in the fine tradition of Orient players so short you assume they're a ball boy until the game kicks off. Loyal Brisbane Road servant for seven seasons.

Where is he now? Released by Martin Ling at the end of the 2003/04 season, Matt went on to play one season for Canvey Island in the Conference, then a handful of games for Histon in the Conference South before retiring. After a spell as a youth coach at Tottenham Hotspur, Matt now works for the FA as a Regional Coach Development Manager. 

Matt Lockwood

Who? The goal-scoring left back, spot-kick specialist and Brisbane Road legend who, according to Barry Hearn, was a Premier League footballer playing in League Two.

Where is he now? Matt became a Premier League footballer - albeit in the Scottish Premier League. After unhappy spells at Nottingham Forest, Colchester, Barnet and Dagenham & Redbridge, he moved north of the border to sign for Dundee, and achieved promotion to the SPL with them at the end of the 2011/12 season. Currently a free agent after being released by Dundee in May 2014. We'll have you back, Matt!

Dean Smith

Who? Defensive rock who, though he could be outpaced by an overweight six-year-old, was a fearless, committed performer with a sizeable football brain.
Where is he now? After moving from Orient to Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship, and then playing his final season for Port Vale in League One, Smith became Orient's Youth Team coach and then assistant to manager Martin Ling, before the pair of them got the boot in January 2009. He moved to former club Walsall to be Head of Youth before being appointed manager in January 2011. He remains there to this day.

Simon Downer

Who? Young centre back - just 19 years old in the play-off final - who, when not injured (which was most of the time), had a fair degree of class about him.
Where is now? Sent out on loan to Aldershot in 2004, Downer left Orient at the end of that season and, over the subsequent years, became intimately acquainted with the treatment tables of Hornchurch, Weymouth, Grays Athletic, Wivenhoe Town and Sutton United. He temporarily retired to become a bricklayer but came back to play fairly regularly for Rushden & Diamonds in the Conference from January 2009 until the end of the 2009/10 season. He's still playing now for Sutton United in the Conference South.
Find him on Twitter: @sidowner

Andy Harris

Who? Gritty and talented South African midfielder who would regularly find himself on the end of loose balls at the edge of the opponents' penalty area, which he would summarily dispatch straight into Row Z with 100 per cent accuracy. Hence why it took him almost 200 games to score his first ever professional goal.
Where is he now? Let go by Paul Brush in 2003, Harris had spells with Chester City, Forest Green Rovers, Weymouth and Eastleigh. He returned to Weymouth in the for the 2009/10 season in the Conference South, where he briefly served as assistant manager and then caretaker manager. Harris has an IQ of 153, putting him in the top 2 per cent of the population, and appeared on an ITV show Britain's Brainiest Footballers in 2002. He's now putting his grey matter to good use as Head Coach of the football academy at Kingston Maurward College in Dorset.

Wim Walschaerts

Who? Exotic foriegn whizz kid... Well, maybe not, but a solid, hard-working midfielder with an unpronouceable name.
Where is now? The play-off final was Wim's last game for Orient, after which he returned to his native country and played for a handful of tongue-twisting Belgian sides, including KFC Strombeek in the second division. For Dutch-speakers, this is Wim being interviewed a few years ago when he played for K Berchem Sport. At the grand old age of 38 he was still playing for and captaining K Ternesse in the sixth tier of Belgian football, but finally retired at the close of the 2010/11 season.

David McGhee

Who? Defender-cum-midfield enforcer, David was nicknamed 'Mad Dog' because, well, he had tattoos and stuff. Consistent performer and often thrown up front by Tommy Taylor in the last five minutes of games Orient were losing, usually to no discernible effect. 

Where is he now? Off the radar. Released by Orient in 2002, he went on to play two seasons for Canvey Island in the Isthmian League Premier Division, then another for Chelmsford City at the same level. He played for Wivenhoe in the Isthmian League Division One South in the 2006/07 season.

Scott Houghton

Who? Chippy and chubby midfielder with a lot of bluster and the occasional moment of effectiveness, such as his goal in the play-off final.
Where is he now? Gave Tommy Taylor an earful for substituting him at the Millennium Stadium and was subsequently shipped out in February 2002. After seven appearances for Halifax Town and then handful more for Stevenage Borough, Scott decided it was a fair cop and became a policeman in Peterborough. He remained a fixture in non-league football, however, playing in the United Counties League Premier Divison for Wootton Blue Cross, Blackstones, St Neots (where he was also assistant manager and manager) and Arlesey Town (where he was also assistant manager). Scott also carved out a new career as a reality TV star in the Sky One show Cop Squad.
Find him on Twitter: @ScottHoughton71

Chris Tate

Who? The frizzy-haired striker from Scarborough who scored a wonder goal against Barnet in the run-up to the play-off final but was widely regarded by fans as hard-working, committed and mostly useless. Nonetheless, scored what remains the fastest ever goal in a play-off final to put Orient 1-0 up after 27 seconds.
Where is he now? Tate fell down the pecking order in the 2001/02 season to 37th-choice striker in Tommy Taylor's enormous, though mostly ineffective, squad. He was loaned out to Stevenage Borough and Chester City, but enjoyed something of a rennaisance under Paul Brush in 2002/03. Shipped out by Martin Ling at the end of the 2003/04 season, Tate signed for Mansfield Town but played only four games in 2004/05 and then spent the next two seasons playing in the lower tiers of Swedish football. Returing to the UK, he signed for Yorkshire side Goole Town in the Northern Premier League Division One South at the start of the 2006/07 season, and scored on his league debut. Retired at the end of the 2008/09 season and now runs a pub in his home town of York.

Jabo Ibehre

Who? Fans' favourite and Brisbane Road enigma. A striker who could confound defenders with breathtaking trickery, pace and strength, while at the same time spooning the ball over the crossbar with his elbow.
Where is he now? After spending the 2008/09 season at Walsall, Jabo moved to MK Dons. Despite a couple of loan spells at Southend and Stockport County, Jabo's become something of fans' favourite at Stadium MK and helped the team reach the play-offs in 2011/12. He moved to Colchester United in the 2012/13 season where he remains today.
Find him on Twitter: @ibehre

On the bench

Scott Barrett

Who? Reliable journeyman goalkeeper who joined Orient at the start of the 1999/2000 season from Gillingham. Mostly played back-up to Ashley Bayes.
Where is he now? After a long spell as first-choice keeper in the 2001/02 season, Barrett left Orient to become assistant manager at Grays Athletic alongside gaffer Mark Stimson. Since then, like a loyal puppy dog, Barrett has followed Stimson wherever he's gone, from Stevenage Borough to Gillingham to Barnet to Ryman Premier League club Thurrock, where he remains today.

John Martin

Who? A local East End lad done good - well, ok, anyway. Martin came up through the ranks at Orient and had a fair degree of promise, hampered only by the fact he had the all the physical stature of an 11-year-old girl.
Where is he now? After leaving Brisbane Road at the end of the 2002/03, Martin had unsuccessful stints at Farnborough Town and Hornchurch. Five happier seasons followed, where the midfielder played fairly regularly for Grays Athletic and then Stevenage Borough in the Conference. (Along with a brief loan spell at Ebbsfleet United.) At the start of the 2009/10 season Martin joined Chelmsford City in the Conference South, where he stayed for two seasons. In 2011/12 he played three games for Harlow Town, but these days plies his trade as a black cab driver.

Ahmet Brkovic

Who? Classy Croation midfielder who spent two seasons at Orient without, apparently, ever being fully trusted by manager Tommy Taylor.
Where is he now? Brkovic's substitute appearance in the play-off final was his last in an Orient shirt. He went on to have seven seasons at Luton, scoring 15 goals in their promotion season of 2004/05 and then a further eight in their first season in the Championship. In 2008/09 he appeared for Millwall in League One, before returning to Croatia to play for third tier side HNK Dubrovnik 1919, and he hasn't been heard of since. Presumably he's still searching for his missing vowel.

Steve Castle

Who? Leyton Orient legend and notorious pizza thief, Castle once scored 18 goals from midfield in a season. His third spell at Brisbane Road, however, was riddled with injuries and he was limited to a handful of appearances, including 23 minutes from the bench in the play-off final.
Where is he now? Loaned out to Stevenage Borough for a few games in the 2001/02 season, Castle returned to Orient to find he wasn't part of new manager Paul Brush's plans. In June 2002 he became player/coach for then Isthmian League side St Albans City and, after a brief spell as assistant manager at Peterborough - was made player/manager a year later, remaining there until October 2005. Since then he's managed Essex Olympian League side Tately FC, St Albans City again, Essex Senior League side Takeley FC and is now the gaffer at Southern League side Royston Town,  combining his duties with driving a cab in Bishop's Stortford.

Billy Beall

Who? Martin Ling had Loick Pires, Paul Brush had Tom Newey... and Tommy Taylor had Billy Beall. That is, a player who seems to enjoy the unwavering faith of the manager, to the absolute bemusement of any fan that's actually seen them play.
Where is he now? Billy Beall confounded the Brisbane Road critics by going to have a successful career in the Premier League... Just kidding, after leaving Orient in 2002 the midfielder plummetted towards pub football with spells at Cambridge City and then Farnborough Town. Released from the Hampshire side at the end of the 2003/04 season and not heard of since.

They should have been playing, if they hadn't stupidly got themselves suspended...

Steve Watts

Who? Preening but sometimes effective striker and part-time model who, when he wasn't being outpaced by the opposition team's mascot during the warm-up, was hanging out with Jordan in dodgy nightclubs. Watts' goal in the play-off semi-final against Hull City helped Orient reach the Millennium Stadium, but the two immature yellow cards he received in the same game ensured he was banned for the final itself.
Where is he now? After scoring 12 goals in the 2001/02 season, Watts was loaned out to Margate, Welling United, Lincoln City and Dagenham & Redbridge, before signing for Shrewsbury Town in March 2003. He then had spells at Dagenham & Redbridge and St Albans City, before returning to former club Fisher Athletic in the summer of 2004, scoring 95 goals in two and a half seasons and helping his team to promotion to the Conference South. He then played for Bromley, Eastleigh and Sutton United before retiring at the end of the 2010/11 season. Steve's now a professional poker player. Like his hair, however, the modelling work has receded.

Carl Griffiths

Who? Orient's best striker since Peter Kitchen. "He'd do fuck all, but he'd score a goal," was manager Tommy Taylor's opinion of 'Super' Carl Griffiths, who possibly ruined Orient's chances of play-off victory by getting sent off for violent conduct in a league game against Mansfield Town, ensuring he'd be suspended for the final.
Where is he now? Two seasons ago Griff was still playing - and scoring - at 39 years old for Barkingside FC in the Essex Senior League. His journey there encompassed two injury-hit seasons at Luton Town and then various spells at non-league clubs Harlow Town, Heybridge Swifts, King's Lynn, Braintree Town, Brentwood Town (where Carl also served as manager) and Maldon Town. In November 2010 he was appointed as manager of Ryman Premier League side Aveley FC, who he duly got relegated before being shown the door in November 2011. These days Carl runs his own travel company and scouts for the West Ham academy.

The manager

Tommy Taylor

Who? Former Orient player - a highly classy defender - who managed the club from November 1996 to October 2001, reaching two play-off finals and building a squad of what appeared to be about 350 players, a handful of which were good.
Where is he now? Since leaving Orient Tommy has been on the managerial merry-go-round, taking the reins at Darlington, Farnborough Town, Seba United in Jamaica, King's Lynn, Boston United and the Grenada national team. Tommy also had a brief three-month spell as Director of Football at Spanish fourth tier side FC Torrevieja in 2010, before taking the reins at Evo-Stik League Division One South side Belper Town from May to September 2011. He's currently managing Finnish second division side Palloseura Kemi Kings.

"I knew that I was always going to score" - Matt Lockwood on taking penalties

Matt scores against Carlisle on 19 August 2000.

Once upon a time Orient fans could rest easy in the knowledge that should their team ever be awarded a penalty, nine times out of ten it would result in a goal. 

That’s thanks to Matt Lockwood, the most ruthlessly clinical spot-kicker in the club’s history. The left back scored 36 out of the 40 penalties he took during his nine-year spell at Brisbane Road from 1998-2007.

Here he explains how he did it…

“The first penalty I took for Orient was in the shoot out at the end of the play-off semi-final against Rotherham in 1999. As a kid I used to take them, but I’d never taken one as a pro. But I knew I was going to nominate myself.

We hadn’t practised penalties before the game – Tommy Taylor used to say there’s no point because you can’t recreate the pressure. He’d say, ‘Just go up and pick a spot.’ I was set to take the fourth penalty, but when it got to me Scott Barrett had already saved two. So I knew I had to score mine to win. The pressure was off because even if I’d have missed we had one more where we could have scored to go through.

I knew what I was going to do, I knew what corner I was going in before I’d even run up to take it. I knew I was going to score.

After that, Tommy said to me, ‘I like the way you took that, you were very cool. Do you want to be on them?’ And I said definitely. So I was on them for the play-off final and I’ve been on them ever since.

Cat and mouse

I never practise taking penalties. Tommy just said to me ‘You don’t miss, so don’t practice.’ I just go and take it. Pick your spot and stick it in. But I don’t like taking penalties. Well, maybe that’s not the right wording, but it’s not a nice feeling because the pressure is on the player to score not on the goalkeeper to save it.

Scoring against Lincoln on 16 October 1999

And you’re playing cat and mouse against the keepers because after a while everyone knew who I was, so I always had to mix it up and change it. That season we went up we had some big, high pressure penalties – Peterborough at home, Mansfield away. But I was never going to let anyone else take them because I wouldn’t have trusted them.

Carl Griffiths actually nicked two penalties off me when he came back to the club in 1999. It was the home game against Chester City and we got awarded one in the first half. He sprinted up to the ball, so I said to him, ‘What do you think you’re doing?’ And he said, ‘Oh go on, let me take it, I haven’t scored since I’ve been back.’ And I thought, oh God, you’ve got to handle forwards with care to get their confidence up so I told him he could have that one.

He scored it and got another goal, then we were awarded another penalty in the second half when he was on a hat-trick. So I had to let him have that one too. But after the game I said to him, ‘That’s it, you’re not having any more.’ And he agreed. He said he’d take his hat-trick and run.

Gary Alexander always used to say to me that if I missed one more he was on them. I said, ‘Gal, you’re never going to be on them.’ He’d say, ‘Imagine how many goals I’d score if I took all the penalties as well. I’d be right at the top of the scoring charts every year.’ But I just said ‘You wouldn’t score them.’ And he wouldn’t. He just would not have scored every one.

Missing hurts

I ended up scoring 36 out of 40 penalties for Orient. And I remember all the ones I missed. The first one was in the first game of the 2001/02 season, against Cheltenham away. As I placed the ball I didn’t know which way to go and I knew I was going to miss. I hit a lame effort down the middle, quite slow and the keeper got a foot to it. He hadn’t dived far enough out of the way, and it came straight back to me and I scored the rebound.

The second was away at Carlisle on a Tuesday night in the 2002/03 season. We were 3-0 down in the last minute and the keeper saved it.

Then the next season I missed one against Cambridge at home on the last day. I took a penalty and scored it then the referee made me take it again because their players were in the box. I knew the keeper was going to dive the same way that I’d gone the first time, so I should have dinked it down the middle. But I thought I’m going to put it in exactly the same place and prove that he can’t get it, prove that the first one wasn’t a fluke. And I just miskicked it slightly and gave him a chance to save it. I was more gutted that I bottled dinking it down the middle.

The last one was in the promotion season against Darlington at home. I slipped. Just as I went to take it my standing foot just went and I scuffed it into the ground. I don’t think the keeper even needed to catch it. He just controlled it with his feet.

Taking penalties has been a massive part of my career. I expect to score every time I take one. I knew that I was always gone to score.”

Read the full story of Matt's time at Orient in my book Leyton Orient Greats

Also read:  Matt Lockwood on Orient's promotion season 2005/06 and that game at Oxford... 
Tommy Taylor on his time as manager of Orient 

“I felt like we were one big family” – Tommy Taylor on managing Orient

For a period in the early millennium, 4000-odd people would congregate in east London on a Saturday afternoon to shout the words “Taylor out!” repeatedly for 90 minutes. 

Yes, Thomas Frederick Taylor – manager of Leyton Orient between November 1996 and October 2001 – certainly felt the sharp end of Brisbane Road’s collective tongues towards the end of his tenure. 

But it's worth remembering though before that he got his team to two play-off finals and signed Matt Lockwood, Carl Griffiths, Amara Simba and, erm, Billy Beall (well, we all make mistakes, although most of ours don't cost £50,000).

Despite the sour end to his reign, Tommy is steadfast in his love for Orient – he also played for club over two spells – and speaks fondly of his time at the helm. 

Here Tommy – warm, entertaining and funny in person – tells the story of his days as manager of Orient… 

“I’d never met Barry Hearn before in my life, but in November 1996 I rang him up and said, ‘Is there a job going at Orient?’ Pat Holland had just got the sack and Cambridge were refusing to offer me more than a rolling three-month contract – even though at that time we were second in Division Three.

"The players thought they
were better than they were"

“They just wanted to know that they had you for three months and could get rid of you anytime without spending money. I said, ‘Up yours, I’m off’. Barry said the job was mine if it wanted it. He knew what job I’d done at Cambridge with a tiny budget.

“I went back to Cambridge and told them I'd got a job. And straight away they said they’d offer me the same money and twice as long. I told them no. They had their chance to do it right from the start.

“I left the next day. But I was nervous about going to Orient because – and I’m not being rude about the team – but I looked at it and thought, fuck me we could get relegated out of football. [Orient were 18th in Division Three at the time.]

“There were some good players there but it was an old team and they thought that they were better than they were and they put themselves in trouble more times than they got out of it.”

Building a team

"Locky was a hell of a player"

“I got Wim Walschaerts in. He was a big one for us. He used to win loads of balls in the middle of the field. I got Dean Smith in - he was a great one. Simon Clark was a great signing, Stuart Hicks was a great signing. We called Smith, Clark and Hicks the three amigos. We should have played 4-4-2, but with three good centre-halfs we had to play them.

“I brought Matty Joseph in, which gave us pace. I got Matt Lockwood in. He was on £125 a week at Bristol Rovers and I said to him, ‘That’s just taking the Mickey, mate.’ So we got him on a good bit of wages and he did very well for himself.

“Locky was a hell of player. Hell of a left foot. I wanted to play him more forward because he couldn’t defend. If I was more forthcoming about it I should have played him and Martin Ling in midfield and let them to go for it. But you don’t really come across a good left back like that who can get forward and put crosses in.”

Best signing

Amara Simba: "Magnificent"

“It was a couple of months into the 1998 season, and Amara Simba knocked on the door, sat down and told me where he’s been and what he’d done. I sent him off to train with the lads. He was unbelievable.

“I got straight on the phone to Barry Hearn and said ‘I think I’ve found a diamond here, mate.’ And Barry said, ‘You tell me that every fucking week.’ And then he asked me if he was a youngster. I said, ‘Well, you could say that. He’s 36.’ Barry yelled, ‘Do what?’ But I said, ‘Baz, just watch him play.’

“He was a magnificent player. Out of this world. I’d love to have seen him in his heyday. I still talk to people now about what a great player he was. He always scored two then wanted to come off. I’d say, ‘What the fuck do you want to come off for?’ And he’d reply, ‘Everybody clap me’. I’d say, ‘You wanker!’”

Super Carl

"He was a fucker"

“That 1998/99 season we had Simba and Carl Griffiths up front and we were doing well. [Orient were third in March.] Griff was a real good centre forward, real clever. One of the better ones. But he was always a luxury. And in those divisions you can’t have luxury players - everyone’s got to do a bit of graft for each other. He’d do fuck all but he’d score a goal. Griff’s feeling was, well, I score my goals and that’s it; either we win the game or we lose the game.

“Port Vale came in for him in March. I told him that I didn’t want him to go, but I’d understand if he did. The money was good for him and he’d be playing a higher grade of football. I said, ‘The supporters won’t want you to go, I’ll take a bit of stick for it, Barry will take a bit of stick for it, but I’m leaving it to you, mate.'

“Then he turned it round in the press and said that it was my fault, that I wanted him to go. But I would never say that to him ever. Griff was a money man. He loved a pound note. He always played in lower division football because he knew he could pick his bonus up for scoring so many goals. It was easy for him. He was a fucker – but I regret not holding on to him.”

Wembley heartbreak

“We got into the play-offs that season. Before the semi-final second leg against Rotherham everyone in the dressing room said they’d take a penalty if it came to it. But at the end of the game I said, ‘Right, who’s got the bollocks to take one now, boys?’ And, I’ll tell you what, they all stood up.

Orient at Wembley

“Scott Barrett said, ‘I’ll save two, don’t worry about it.’ And he did. But then in the final against Scunthorpe we had so many chances to score but it just wouldn’t go in. I said to Paul Clark, it’s just not our day today. We had five or six good chances, they had one good chance and scored.

“I told the boys to watch out for Alex Calvo-Garcia. I said if anyone’s going to score in this game it’s going to be him - he’d scored against us nearly every time we played. He always came on the blind side of everyone – and that’s what happened, he came around the back post with a header.

“Losing that final was a massive blow. I’d rather have lost in the semi than in the final. It absolutely killed the players. We had a great support there. If they cheered like that every week we’d have slaughtered everyone. The team we had deserved to go up. We had some footballers. We were a better side than Scunthorpe.”

Ups and downs

“The next season was a poor one. [Orient finished 19th.] It was one of those play-off things. Everyone was on a downer. But I didn’t want to change the squad at all. I thought we were good enough to get back up there. And the following season showed that.

"The first play-off final killed me more than the second"

“We got into the play-offs again in 2000/01. Locky scored that magnificent goal in the semi-final against Hull. I remember saying to Paul Clark, ‘He’s going to hit it any minute.’ And he just got it on his left foot and let it go.

“In the final against Blackpool we went 1-0 up very early. We weren’t playing outstandingly but we were in front. We missed a couple of good chances. But they were a good team. Their boy Paul Simpson was the cleverest player on the field and he changed the game. He made the difference, coming in behind the behind the midfield two.

“But the first play-off final killed me more than the second. I could take the second one, but I know it was hard and I felt for the players and the supporters. We should have been in the next division. We had a good enough team to get there but you have to do it for 40-odd games but we didn’t do it for 40-odd games."

“Taylor out”

“The next season I thought the team we still had there would do well. It only needed one or two bits or pieces moved about or brought in. But the fans were on my back.

“If I said to you, for the next month I’m going to come round your house, give you a tenner, and be there for 90 minutes shouting and having a go at you. How would you like it? But that’s my work and I have to deal with it.

“It’s harsh, but I love it. You get your good times, you get your bad times. I get paid for it. It’s probably the only job in the world where someone can come and have a go at someone. Football supporters, especially the men, only come to let off their steam. Their wife has a go at them every night of the week and they think, fuck it, I’ll go and have a go at the manager, at that cunt over there.

“But people pay their money, they can say what they like. The only thing I didn’t like is when my wife and kids were there and they take the abuse and they don’t deserve it. And Barry’s family… they were having a go at them too. And it was nothing to do with Barry.”

The final curtain

“By October I could see where Barry was going. He’d taken enough abuse over Pat Holland before that, and I didn’t think he needed that sort of abuse chucked at him again.

"You won't find a better chairman in the Football League"

“I went to his house and Barry said to me ‘Do you think it’s time?’ He didn’t want to say I was sacked. I said, ‘Yes, it is. It’s upsetting to say that, but it is.’ We shook hands. It was the hardest thing for us to say cheerio to each other.

“You’ll never find a better chairman than Barry Hearn in the Football League, I’ll tell you that. He knows sport, he knows people who go out there and give it their all. He’s a lovely man, he’s passionate for the club and he wants the club to do well. You won’t find a better chairman than that.

“I never had an argument with the man. He used to come to me and say, I don’t think this is right, I don’t think that’s right. And I’d say that’s the way I want to do it, and he’d say fair enough, if it goes wrong it’s down to you. His wife is a beautiful woman and she’d give me so much stick in the board room. Barry would say, ‘I told you, it’s no good me talking, she can do the talking for me.’

“I was devastated to go. I didn’t get the chance to say goodbye to the players. But to tell you the truth I would have been so emotional with them I couldn’t have gone back. I felt like they were one big family. And all of them rung me up. Everybody said they were sorry. I said, that’s football, get on with it. And make sure you don’t lose any more games!”

Orient forever

“I think I’m an honest manager. I always say to the players, ‘Whatever I’ve got, I’ll give you, but you’ve got to give me whatever you’ve got on the field. And if you need anything at any time, if your family needs anything at any time, you can always speak to me and I’ll get it done for you. But if I’m doing that for you, you’ve got to give me 110 per cent every time you go out. That’s on the training ground as well.’

“If you talk to any of the players at Orient and ask them how I treated them, not one of them would say I didn’t give them what they wanted at any time. If they think they’re cocky and they’ve got one on me then I’ll blast them in front of people, and if they don’t like it I’ll say, ‘Get your fucking gear and go home now.’ I’d rather put two kids on instead of two senior players.

"Orient’s a club everyone likes and where you want you to do well. Orient people are very close. It’s a great club and I hope for Barry and the supporters’ sake it keeps going up the league. I can’t blame Barry for not putting his hand in his pocket to subsidise it. He’s put a lot of money into it.

"I would go back to Orient. If Barry rang me up and asked me to be chief scout I’d have to think about it because it’s a great club to work for."

You can read the full account of Tommy's time at Orient, both as player and manager in my book Leyton Orient Greats