The Young Americans [Leyton Orient]

Totally love this for many reasons.

1. Im a GFOP and have definitely gotten into "America's Team"TM as a result (and at just the right time);
2. Am just getting back into FM and am playing a Leyton Orient save (still August though);
3. Just went to London for my first time in November with my daughter and took in the O's first home loss for months and months vs Preston North End




Cheers from Oakland! Keep up the good work

Justin

k1rups : Brilliant story so far! Especially after Constancia this has lived up to the hype that created! An incredible run leaving you top and hopefully promotion!

Thanks for the kind words k1rups.

I still got some stories left to tell about CD Constancia. I have the raw dafter written for another 10 chapters documenting their first experiences in the Champions League. Hope to get around getting that posted some day.

justinhorner : Totally love this for many reasons.

1. Im a GFOP and have definitely gotten into "America's Team"TM as a result (and at just the right time);
2. Am just getting back into FM and am playing a Leyton Orient save (still August though);
3. Just went to London for my first time in November with my daughter and took in the O's first home loss for months and months vs Preston North End

Cheers from Oakland! Keep up the good work

Justin

Hei Justin,

This is without a doubt the coolest response I have ever received on any of my stories. Having a fellow GFOP enjoying the story is the ultimate compliment.

So cool that you actually went all the way from Oakland (been there twice) to London and watched a game. Guess I don’t have any excuses for not taking the short trip from Norway.

I’m really enjoying the Leyton Orient save even as it just threw me a giant curveball after the first season. I hope to get started on the "America's Team" storyline as soon as I get to scout outside of the UK.

PS Love the picture
Thomas

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/TYA_zps59403399.jpg

Change of mind

The start to the month of February was not the best as our left back Luke Giverin was injured in the first game of the month and was ruled out for up to 6-7 weeks.


The biggest game of the month was against 4th place Peterborough United. A stunned crowd saw a Leyton Orient team down by two goals already after 20 minutes of play. Instead of packing it in the team came all the way back before the first half was over. First a goal by Tom Lawrence. Then a goal on a corner by Nathan Clarke to compensate for the own goal he had scored earlier in the half.
In the second half Tom Lawrence scored his second of the day and the 3rd in the last two games, to complete the turnaround.


And I had more good news coming my way. AML Dean Cox and his agent finally came to there senses. The player who just a few weeks ago had demanded an instant trade had now completely changed his mind and wanted to stay. He even told the press how happy he was with Leyton Orient and that he was sure that his future was with the London club. If his change of mind had anything to do with the fact that his closest rival for the spot at the AML Tom Lawrence went down for two weeks with an injury the same day is unclear.

Just a few days later the other player who wanted to leave, Scott Cuthbert also changed his mind and informed me that he now saw his future with Leyton Orient.


We finished the month with a 3W-1D-0L record and all looked good. Now we had a tough month ahead of us. We would have to play seven games in the month to come and a lot would be decided in those games.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Feb_14_Results_zps747e77cc.jpg

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Feb_14_Standing_zps873444a9.jpg

Another nice update and results to go with it

Walter : Another nice update and results to go with it

Thanks Walter

Slow month but getting closer to completing the first part of the journey.

Awesome story Northwood!! Next time you should try an Aussie version lol

promitch : Awesome story Northwood!! Next time you should try an Aussie version lol

Thanks for reading promitch.
Who would not love to go travel around Australia?

But what are the odds of my board allowing me to fly around the world to scout Australia when they will not even let me cross the canal to look for players in Europa?

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/TYA_zps59403399.jpg

March was a brutal month with seven games in 29 days and I decided that we could afford to pick out spots. After a great road win over Notts County FC after a late goal by Tom Lawrence and with second place team Brentford FC coming to town the weekend after we decide to rest some of the key players in the midweek game against 23rd ranked Port Vale FC.
We didn't allow any clear cut chances but still allowed two goals. The first was our second own goal scored in the last two games and the second goal came after another “mishap” from a corner. We had to settle for a disappointing draw.


We now had just 10 games left to play in the season and we had already guaranteed ourselves a playoff spot but we of course had our goals set much higher than that.


It was the time of year for our first youth intake since I had taken over as manager. With a fairly basic youth setup I didn't have much hope that any wonderkids would show up on my doorstep.
Most of the players were not worth a second look but two players looked interesting.

One was a central defender named Horace Ifill. Just 15 years old he already had the body of a man and the physic to go with it.
But the real interesting player was local kit Callum Wilson. He was a 15 year old ball winning midfielder with excellent technique, determination and a great work rate. His physical attributes were also good for a kit his age.
We signed both to youth contracts and I asked the under 18s Head coach Andy Edwards to keep an eye out for them.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Mar_14_Youth_zps3fdf6330.jpg


The game against Brentford was the biggest event in Leyton that winter. Long before the referee blew in his whistle to start the game, all 9.311 seats on Brisbane Road were filled with eager fans. When the season started we had averaged just over 4.500 people for our home games. That had increased during the season as our results got better to just above 6.000, but this was our first ever sellout.

As it often happens when two teams meet with a lot on the line, it starts out slow. The first half was borrowing without a single shot on goal by any of the teams but that were to change in the second half. Only four minutes was played when David Mooeny volleyed a cross from Dean Cox into the back of the net and the fans went wild.
Fans and players had hardly finished celebrating before Jody Morris committed a clumsy penalty in the other end of the field. The Brentford played stepped up and hit the ball hard. But he also hit it in the middle of the goal. Goalkeeper Jamie Jones just had to lay down for the easy save.
Instead we added a second goal with 12 minutes left on the clock when loan-striker from Tottenham Shaquile Coulthirst stepped in front of a weak backward pass from the Brentford defends for the easy goal.
We had managed just two shots on goal all day and scored on both of them.


The next game with tied 2-2 with Walsall on the road and we had the same result against Oldham, now lead by the man who had been kicked out of the office i now use daily, Russell Slade.
The last game of the month was a solid 2-0 home win over Bradford.

We were still undefeated at home and had now scored two goals in in each of our 8 last games. Only a monumental breakdown could take the league title away from us now.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Mar_14_Results_zps8778a4f9.jpg

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Mar_14_Standing_zps9b1ccc5c.jpg

Looking good value for the league title, keep it up and you'll be in the Prem soon!

Congrats mate! Don't worry, you're already champion!

You'll have to slip up really badly to lose that automatic promotion place. Congrats on securing the playoff place!

Louis O. : Looking good value for the league title, keep it up and you'll be in the Prem soon!

There is still a long way to the EPL but a title in the first season would be pretty cool.

AAN : Congrats mate! Don't worry, you're already champion!

Thanks. Just need a few more points to tie it up.

Walter : You'll have to slip up really badly to lose that automatic promotion place. Congrats on securing the playoff place!

Thanks
The automatic promotion is secured. Now we are looking for silverware

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/TYA_zps59403399.jpg

We are the Champions

We just needed a single point in the game against Gillingham FC to secure promotion. It was not pretty but the team came away with the needed 1-0 win. I had reached my first goal as a manager and we would play in the Sky Bet Championship next season.

Much of the excitement surrounding the promotion was lost the day after when The Daily Mirror ran a story about the possible stepping down by team president Barry Hearn. No sources we quoted and Barry did not take any calls.

I was worried.
Considering how I had taken over the manager position from Russell Slade I knew that my spot was not secure in any way just because I had helped the team to a promotion.

New owner
New direction
New manager

I guess that part of being a football manager is always looking for the worst case scenario.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/Hearn_zpse76e4f99.jpg

The weekend after we could take home the league title with a win against Crawley FC. The play was uninspired and we fell behind by two goals before 30 minutes were played. I failed to get the players to respond in the second half and we lost the game but as the results started to come in from around the league it became clear that we could no longer be caught and Leyton Orient were the winners of the 2013-2014 Sky Bet League 1.


Just three days later the team had to play Wolws at home in front of 8.330 people. It was the undefeated streak at home on the line. Team had probably celebrated a little too hard after the win. We gave up a hat-trick to Kevin Doyle. Our home win streak was over and we had lost two league games in a row for the first time all season.
We had now lost three of the last four games but to be perfectly honest, I didn't care.

We are the Champions.


To the last home game of the season over 7.000 showed up for a meaningless game and were treated to a rollercoaster ride. We took the lead on the penalty already after 11 minutes. Then gave up two goals in three minutes before the half and after a thunder speech in the halftime break, the team stiffened up and scored another two goals for the win in the second half.

Before the final game of the season against the MK Dons we just needed 1 point to get to the milestone 100 points for the season. After another shootout we got away with the three points and finished the season with a 31W-9D-6L record for a new league record 102 points.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/2013_14Finalresults_zpsf97e6f0e.jpg

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/2013_14Finalstanding_zps3dd92060.jpg


In front of the home fans we could lift up the first trophy Leyton Orient FC had won since the year I was born.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q173/Nordskov_dk/Leyton%20O/2014_preseason2_zps9c4130e1.jpg


When we had played our last game I didn't waste any time starting to prepare for the next season. Even before it was decided who would move up to the Sky Bet Championship together with us and who would go down, I started the process of overhauling the back office. Our clueless Hd. Scout was the first to go and a few of the coaches soon followed.
The day it was decided that Colchester (who finished 5th and 28 points behind us in the league) would be the last team to follow Wolverhampton and us up to the Sky Bet Championship, we had already gathered the scouting and coaching team we wanted for next season.


I was not the only one sacking people. Another person that found himself in the unemployment line was a guy with the name of David Moyes. In his first season as the manager of Manchester United the team failed to finish in the top-4.
Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City took the first four places and qualified for the Champions League.
That left United on the outside and they would have to play in the Europa League together with Newcastle.
That was apparently more than what the American owners could accept and David Moyes was shown the door after less than one year after he was hired to replace Sir Alex Ferguson.

The new manager leading them into that battle would be Jürgen Klopp who joined the red devils after winning the German league six points in front of Schalke 04 and Bayern Munich.
Klopp didn't get off to the best of starts with is new club as he lost the FA Cup final to Newcastle in his first game in charge.


I didn't feel the slightest sorry for David Moyes but one person I was feeling a bit sorry for was Russell Slade. After he was squeezed out as Leyton Orient manager when I was handed the team before the start of the season he had found a new job as manager of Oldham Athletic. He had very little to work with and the Oldham Latics finished last in the league and were relegated but for once Russell Slade got to keep his job.

Congrats mate! Told you that you were already champion!

AAN : Congrats mate! Told you that you were already champion!

Very true AAN.
I better start listening more to you from now on.