Leyton Orient struggled for inspiration in front of goal as they were held at home by a dogged Stevenage side.
Interim manager Jobi McAnuff was taking only his third game in charge and made the bold decision to leave Orient top scorer Dan Johnson on the bench.
The visitors were the more industrious side in the early stages. Elliot Osborne found space down the right, whipping in a cross but Luke Norris’ header failed to stretch Lawrence Vigouroux in the Orient goal.
Twice more Vigouroux was called into action, parrying well from an Elliott List drive and beating away a Norris header from a corner.
In a listless first 45 minutes, Orient enjoyed the bulk of possession but could only register one shot – Conor Wilkinson’s positive break forward saw him unleash a low drive that had the visitor’s keeper scrambling but it flew just wide.
After five minutes of the second half, the prospect of goals in a game between two mid-table sides looked bleak. Between them, the two teams had only scored nine in their last six games.
The half-time sprinklers at Brisbane Road were faulty, forming small pools of water outside the 18-yard boxes, leading match commentator “Dulcet” Dave Victor to remark: “You know it’s not a great game when people are talking about sprinklers.”
Fortunately, better moments were to come. Stevenage’s Ben Coker rattled the crossbar with a well struck freekick.
This was the wake-up call Orient needed and they slowly became more assertive. An elegant swivel outside the box saw Dan Kemp work some space to shoot, his effort coming agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock, striking the inside of the post before being cleared to safety.
Stevenage returned fire. Tom Pett forced a save, before moments later Osborne’s rasping shot looked destined for the top corner, only for the fingertips of Vigouroux to divert it safely over the bar.
It was 79 minutes before Dan Johnson’s introduction and just four minutes later he was gifted the best chance of the game. Intercepting a poor back pass from right back Luther Wildin, he found himself one-on-one with the Stevenage keeper only for his scuffed finish to end up nearer the corner flag than the net.
For new manager McAnuff it was “a sign of where we are at the moment – they’re just not quite going in”.
Orient defender James Brophy called the performance “a reaction from Saturday” after their 4-0 drubbing away at the hands of Exeter City, but that the overall feeling was one of “frustration”.
A clean sheet, courtesy of some fine Vigouroux saves, was one of few positives for an Orient side lacking confidence.
Before kick-off both teams had observed a minute’s applause in memory of Glenn Roeder, who started his career at Leyton Orient, appearing 115 times before going on to play for clubs including QPR and Newcastle. He later managed clubs including East London rivals West Ham, Newcastle and Norwich.
His is a legacy that will live long in the memory of Orient fans. This game will not.
