The 47-year-old was full of praise for Josh Coulson and hinted he would like to sign the defender permanently

Justin Edinburgh declared himself satisfied after watching Leyton Orient battle past Haringey Borough in the first round of the FA Trophy this afternoon.

The O’s made the worst possible start at Coles Park after conceding in the fifth minute when Michael Ademiluyi fired past Dean Brill from 16-yards.

Orient eventually got back on level terms with the Bostik North club when Josh Coulson volleyed home with 58 minutes played.

Edinburgh then saw Matt Harrold come on and score with his first touch in the 80th minute to secure a 2-1 win for O’s.

“We were more professional than anything and that is all you can ask when you come to a team like Haringey Borough,” said the 47-year-old.

“It was a potential banana skin and for them to take the lead as early as they did made it very difficult, but I thought we did what we needed to do.

“Haringey showed a greater appetite in the first half, so that disappointed me, but I also felt we could have been calmer and more assured in possession.

“We were a little bit wild and reckless with our clearances and our middle play, but the boys came out and produced a better second half.

“There is room for improvement, but in cup competitions the only thing that matters is winning.”

Coulson’s return was a major positive for Orient and even when they were on the back foot in the first half, he looked composed.

The Cambridge United loanee made his first appearance since September 23 after struggling with a groin injury and ended it on a high by scoring with his last touch.

Edinburgh admitted he would like Coulson to remain part of his squad at Brisbane Road beyond Jauary.

He added: “Josh did very well in the whole game and even in the first half he looked assured and didn’t look like he had been out for the period of time he has been.

“Obviously the icing on the cake was for him to get the equaliser and for us to be able to bring him off with a very good 60 minutes in the bank.

“He is someone I admire and someone I know as a player and someone I’d like to have at the club (permanently), so hopefully that’s something we can make happen.”

The Orient head coach acknowledged it was far from vintage, but he expects the victory to boost his squad even more.

Edinburgh said: “We weren’t at our best and there were difficult circumstances and things expected of us, but it is back-to-back wins now and that breeds confidence. You need to value that and we’ll take it into next week hopefully.”