On Saturday 15th March, Leyton Orient Walking FC Over 50s Reds travelled to Billericay to commence their campaign in Division 2 of the Essex Walking Football League (EWFL). Already missing Paul Franklin, Jake Zelkowicz, Andrew Okocha and Stuart Wright, a message was received from Nad Pillay advising that he would also not be able to make it. Reserve and stand-in manager Shayne Perry trundled off to an empty, desolate shipping container to change.

For the first match against Billericay Town Blue, Orient lined up with Tony Sullivan in goal, Adam Rohm in defence, a midfield three of Alan Cox, Paul Weston and Andrew Coyle with Steve Eades up-front. Cox received an early green card for passing straight back to the keeper. Eades scored but the goal was ruled out for a running offence. An Eades shot was saved and a shot by Cox sent wide before Sullivan made a low save. The first half finished goalless. The second half saw a flurry of shots from Eades and Cox – all of which were saved or blocked or sent wide. Billericay came back into the game and forced Sullivan into two saves. Eades had another shot saved. Cox received a second green card so was replaced by Perry for the last few minutes. Final score: Leyton Orient Reds 0 v 0 Billericay Town Blue.

For Orient’s second match against Bexley Reds, Perry replaced Cox in the starting line-up. The early minutes saw both teams test each other out without any goals being scored. A Bexley player was then blue-carded for what can best be described as ‘industrial’ language after being pinged by the referee for something (probably running). Orient could not take advantage of the extra player as Bexley kept the ball well. Rohm moved upfield to support play whilst the Bexley striker remained near the Orient goal and received a through ball. The Bexley striker did not score but Rohm was adjudged to have ran back to try and retrieve the situation – Rohm was blue-carded and Bexley were also awarded a penalty which seemed a bit like a double punishment. Their sheepish striker scored from the spot. Orient did reasonably well in terms of keeping possession whilst a player down and the first half finished with Orient down by that single goal. In the second half Orient were not good – conceding goals at regular intervals due to individual and team mistakes. Bexley probably couldn’t believe their luck as Orient players misplaced passes, made poor decisions or left wide open spaces for Bexley players to make use of. Even the normally reliable Sullivan was culpable for one of their goals. Eades was unlucky not to score with a deft chip over a prone goalkeeper but there wasn’t much else to shout about. Final score: Leyton Orient Reds 0 v 5 Bexley Reds.

For the third match against Beacon Hill Rovers Whites, Cox replaced Weston in the starting line-up. Eades was lined up to score when he was clearly tackled on the edge of the Beacon Hill penalty area. All the players turned to the ref for the inevitable penalty award but the ref said that his view had been blocked so couldn’t award anything. Beacon Hill had a free-kick near the Orient goal and, although the shot was saved by Sullivan, the rebound fell between Perry and Rohm and a Beacon Hill player put the ball into the net. Beacon Hill got a second goal toward the end of the first-half. Weston replaced Perry for the second-half. A shot from Cox was well saved before Beacon Hill were awarded a penalty as Orient reached four running offences. The penalty was thankfully well saved by Sullivan. Eades put a shot over the bar before having another shot saved. With time running out Beacon Hill committed their fourth running offence with Eades converting the penalty to reduce the deficit. In the four seconds that remained Orient were unable to get an equaliser. Final score: Beacon Hill Rovers White 2 v 1 Leyton Orient Reds (Eades).

Stand-in Manager Shayne Perry remarked: “We should have won the first match against Billericay based on the number of shots we had, plus the disallowed goal, but we were truly awful in the second half against Bexley. Perhaps we should have shut up shop after conceding the second or third goal rather than chase a lost cause. We were very unlucky not to have been awarded an early penalty against Beacon Hill but they also had a penalty saved by Sullivan. Things will undoubtedly get better, particularly as more players become available.”

Leyton Orient Red squad: Tony Sullivan (Gk), Steve Eades (Cpt), Adam Rohm, Paul Weston, Alan Cox, Andrew Coyle, Shayne Perry.

Goalscorers: Eades.

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Image used © 2025 Trevor Ridley