Ex-West Ham United striker reflects on changes over the summer, speed of fourth tier of English football and being patient

Leyton Orient forward Paul McCallum accepts he needs to be patient with plenty of other good attacking options at the club.

The 23-year-old scored his first competitive goal for O’s in nearly a year when he headed home in the 73rd minute against Fulham in the first round of the English Football League Cup on Tuesday before completing his brace eight minutes later.

It adds to the four goals the ex-West Ham United striker netted during pre-season at the likes of Woking, Dagenham & Redbridge and Greenwich Borough.

After suffering cruciate knee ligament damage in September, boss Andy Hessenthaler has treated the forward with care so far.

But after finding the net against Newport County last season on August 22, McCallum wants the chance to repeat the trick when the same opposition visit this weekend.

He said: “Of course I need to be patient. We’ve got five strikers who are all ready and want to play and score goals.

“We all want to play and we have 45 more league games to go so it is all about being patient and waiting and when you get your chance, you have to take it.

“I should have had a few against Newport last year, but I did score against them. It would be good to get a run-out on Saturday.”

Once again it has been another summer of change for the east Londoners with nine players leaving and the same number coming in.

McCallum believes the new Orient squad are confident about the 2016/17 campaign and full of belief.

He added: “We lost some very good players, but we’ve brought in some very good players this summer so it has evened itself out.

“Last season we were very unlucky not to make the play-offs. This year everyone is confident and you have to be in this league, we all feel confident.”

The O’s forward also reflected on suggestions Newport will be a much easier match compared to Fulham.

Orient’s current top goalscorer pointed out the frantic nature of games in the division makes every fixture difficult.

“I always believe that League Two is probably the hardest division in England and so 100mphs,” said McCallum.

“Where as with Fulham, they respect you and sit off you a little bit more because that is how they play. I think we can’t take any team lightly and we need to go into them all 110 per cent.”