Steven Alzate, Myles Judd and Josh Koroma please manager and keep him optimistic ahead of next season
Danny Webb admits the performances of Leyton Orient’s talented youngsters are keeping him positive despite a difficult month in League Two.
The O’s kick-started March in the best possible fashion with a comprehensive 4-0 victory at relegatin rivals Newport County.
Orient have had no reward from the other four fixtures but Steven Alzate was a bright spot during Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at Crawley Town.
“Steven has a big future and he is not the only one. It is hard for a manager because I don’t want to say ‘I put the team out and I only look at the youngsters and if we lose we lose’ - that is not the case,” said Webb.
“But there has been a lot of damage which has already been done and I sound like a broken record, yet the story of the season is the goals we have conceded, the results we have had and the whole vibe around the place.
“I have tried to say the same things during the good performances and the wins and I have said ‘let’s slow down and think of next season’ because I more than anyone want to stay in this league.
“But despite the results, I am always lively in interviews because I am seeing lots of positives in people like Alzate and (Josh) Koroma even if he had a quiet day.
“Myles Judd is not scared of anyone and Henry Ochieng comes on and I said he’s going to be like Kante, but sooner or later we need to talk about the future.
“There needs to be a plan because we had nearly 800 fans at Crawley and they want to know what is going to happen next season.”
Webb was frustrated with O’s defending at Broadfield Stadium on Saturday and made no excuses for the showing.
He conceded the 792 fans that made the trip to West Sussex would have left bitterly disappointed with what they witnessed.
But Webb believes if Orient had a plan in place for next season it would soften the blow of another bad result.
“If we go down, are we going to have a summer of really poor recruitment again and are we going to pay people too much money again? That is why a lot of supporters have got the hump,” said Webb.
“They don’t know what is happening tomorrow and I have tried my hardest to give them some security about what I want to do, but it is a bit frustrating because I feel like I am the only one saying it. Only the media and fans can see what I am trying to do.
“I genuinely think despite the result at Crawley and the goals we conceded, if we came out and said ‘we are starting a new recruitment process, the fans favourites are all tapped up and sorted, we are putting them on contracts and no matter what happens we are going to come back stronger’ then it would soften the blow of the results or the thought of going down and give them something to look forward to apart from the next game and whether we can scrap something with what we have got.
“I have gone into every match accepting we probably won’t scrap things with what we have got, but instead of focusing on what I haven’t got, I have looked at what I have got and tried to make the best of it and build on it for next season.
“It is shame as most of the supporters left Crawley on Saturday and would have had a moan and a groan and rightly so, but as soon as something is put out there about where we are all going then we can all jump on the same bandwagon. At the minute I am singing the same thing and just waiting for people to back me up.”
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