Orient held at Brighton this time

5:37pm Saturday 30th August 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

Brighton Hove Albion 0
Leyton Orient 0
(League One)

ORIENT secured their second consecutive scoreless draw after holing Brighton at the Withdean.

Fresh from holding Carlsile last weekend, Martin Ling's men had to be content with a point although could have taken all three.

Just as last week the east Londoners dominated the play and also cared out the more clear cut chances, although home keeper Michel Kuipers proved in inspirational form.

The O's would have been grateful, however to their own keeper Glenn Morris, who produced an excellent stop to deny Nicky Forster just before the end.

The visitors had the first chance of the afternoon in the eighth minute, but his snap shot from Morris' huge clearance was off target on eight minutes.

Jason Demetriou's curling shot then brought a fine stop from Kuipers, who got down well to his right on 17 minutes.

Ryan Jarvis was the next to be thwarted by Kuipers, who was down well in the 28th minute.

Morris was finally called into action in the 40th minute, although it was a routine stop to keep out Adam Virgo's header.

Orient skipper Stephen Purches then fired over Kuipers bar right on the stroke of half time. Brighton boss Micky Adams made a double substitution at the break, and it was one of them former Swansea man Kevin McLeod, who produced an early shot that Morris did well to save at the near post.

Kuipers then parried Jarvis' next effort to safety after latching onto Simon Dawkins' cross from the left.

The on-loan Spurs man attempted to break the deadlock from 25-yards, but his effort lacked the power to really trouble Kuipers.

Brighton came even closer to breaking the deadlock in the 57th minute, when defender Aiden Palmer did well to clear Virgo's header off the line from McLeod's corner.

Orient then had a penalty appeal denied in the 73rd minute, when Boyd staked a claim that his shot had been blocked by an arm, before Demetriou's follow-up effort sailed just wide.

Then in the 83rd minute Kuipers denied Demetriou after Jarvis and Adam Chambers' had combined to carve out an effort for the midfielder.

Chambers' own effort was then blocked as they once again failed to find a way through.

But matters could have end disastrously for the Londoners, but for a brilliant save from Morris two minutes from time when he somehow kept out Forster's close range effort.

Orient: Morris; Purches, Thelwell, Saah, Palmer; Jarvis, Chambers, Terry, Demetriou; Dawkins (Melligan 66), Boyd. Unused: Jones (GK), Cave-Brown, Pires, Ashworth.