George Elokobi insists there is more to come from Leyton Orient and himself after Solihull Moors win

David Mooney wheels off to celebrate after scoring for Leyton Orient against Solihull Moors (pic: Simon O'Connor). (Image: Simon O'Connor Photography)

George Elokobi believes Leyton Orient will keep improving as the season goes on and feels he will get better with the more games he plays.

The powerful central defender played his part on Tuesday night, as the O’s earned their first win in the National League with a 3-1 victory at home to Solihull Moors.

Steve Davis would have been delighted with his teams showing after goals from captain Charlie Lee, David Mooney and Elokobi sealed a well deserved three points in front of 4,441 spectators.

“We are not getting carried away just yet because we know there is plenty more to come, so we’ll keep working at it,” said the former Colchester United man.

“The manager is pointing us in the right direction and he is fantastic. There is a way he wants us to play and we are slowly getting there.

“We are a new group, but that is not an excuse because we have a lot of experience in the squad. We want to play the right way, but if we have to battle we will and at times we are going to need to do that against certain teams.

“Some sides may just sit back and try to hit us on the counter at Brisbane Road, so we need to make sure we keep our feet on the ground and keep working hard.

“But at the end of the day the victory against Solihull is only three points and it is a long, long season ahead.”

Elokobi is spot-on. It is one win and it doesn’t make a season, but Orient needed to get off the mark early to keep the buzz around the club and they have.

After the poor showing away to Sutton United on Saturday, O’s provided the perfect response against Solihull and could have won by more.

Orient had a few worrying moments at the back, like they did at the weekend in the 2-0 loss at Gander Green Lane, but looked more solid on a whole.

And the partnership between Josh Coulson and Elokobi seems to be developing nicely even if they have only played a handful of matches alongside each other.

“I definitely feel there is a lot more to come from me. This is just my third 90 minutes if you include the one I got in pre-season,” said Orient’s number five.

“There is plenty more to come from myself and from the boys, so once we get that going we should hopefully be a force to be reckoned with.

“At the same time we will respect every team we play and all of their players because we are in the same league as them and they are all good individuals.

“We will carry on working as a team and make sure we improve on the things we haven’t got right yet.”

O’s had a lapse of concentration 13 minutes from time yesterday when Afolayan Oladapo beat Charlie Grainger from a tight angle.

But Elokobi settled any potential nerves with his first goal for the club less than 60 seconds after the restart.

Macauley Bonne flicked the ball on from James Dayton’s corner and Orient’s number five deflected the ball into the corner.

It was a moment to remember for Elokobi and he was touched to hear the Brisbane Road faithful serenade him soon after.

He added: “It is always special to get a goal early on and to hear the fans chanting your name. It is great to hear that as a player and shows they appreciate what you are doing on the pitch for them.

“As an individual I always do my best and give 100 per cent every single day in training and in the games I play and I’ll do that when I am not starting.

“There will be a time when I am not involved because we have a good group and it is a squad game.

“It will not be the same XI who plays throughout, but I will give it my all behind the scenes, which I am already doing, and it is amazing to have such a fantastic reception from the fans.”