After the exhilaration of the FA Cup win over Fulham, it was back down to earth with a tough home match against Northampton Town. Martin Ling said before the match that he expected Northampton to reach the playoffs this season and it was easy to see why. Orient were pretty much outplayed for the whole match and this can only be put down to a combination of FA Cup win hangover and, more significantly, missing Craig Easton in midfield.
It’s the kind of game that could prove crucial at the end of the season but it’s been an exceptional few weeks so it would be premature to put this down as the beginning of a slide towards mid-table.