With Orient’s immediate future now decided until at least the summer, it is vital a plan is put in place for the 2017/18 campaign.
Tom Parkes hopes Danny Webb stays as Leyton Orient manager next season, regardless of what division the club are in, having impressed the playing squad at Brisbane Road.
O’s remain bottom of League Two and seven points from safety after suffering their 24th defeat of the campaign last weekend.
It looks certain Orient will drop out of the Football League despite most of the displays under Webb offering encouragement in spite of the poor results, but his contract expires at the end of the season.
“Personally, if the gaffer gets to stay here next year then I will be more than happy because I think he has been fantastic since taking over,” said Parkes.
“If you have not had a good game yourself then he is always there to put an arm around you and that’s the same with his assistant Omer (Riza).
“The training sessions are good and whatever happens is down to the gaffer and the chairman, but I think he is a great manager and he has got great potential.”
Webb’s record in charge of Orient does not make good reading, but he has been left a thankless task with mainly youngsters to rely upon.
He has made mistakes since taking over on January 29, yet was always likely to in what is his first senior managerial role.
But Webb has demonstrated over the last seven weeks that if given time, he could well be the man to nurture the talent at Brisbane Road and get the best out of them even if they are in the National League.
The 33-year-old has only won two of his 11 games in charge and lost eight, but Orient have produced some of their best displays of the season under him.
O’s certainly deserved more from losses against Carlisle United, Morecambe and Notts County and Parkes added: “We’ve said as a team that our performances have been pretty positive under the gaffer.
“We are trying to play football and we are creating a lot of chances, but the results have not gone our way. I am hoping sooner rather than later the results turn around and we can get on a little run.”
Even if Orient do hit form, with Newport County recently winning back-to-back games, it is another club they must get above if they are to avoid finishing in the bottom two.
Parkes produced one of his best performances in an O’s shirt against Doncaster on Saturday and is one of few ‘senior’ players still contracted to the club past this season.
The 25-year-old signed a two-year deal last summer, so if they were to suffer relegation, he could be part of a squad in the National League.
Orient have several players out of contract on June 30, including Michael Collins, Sammy Moore, Paul McCallum, Ollie Palmer, Alex Cisak, Nigel Atangana, Nicky Hunt and Callum Kennedy.
Gavin Massey and Liam Kelly have deals past this season, but the pair would likely be sold if O’s were to go down in May.
With Orient’s immediate future now decided until at least the summer, it is vital a plan is put in place for the 2017/18 campaign.
If Francesco Becchetti intends on staying at the club then he needs to make a decision over the manager’s job and Webb has done enough to be handed the chance to rebuild O’s with some stability long overdue at Brisbane Road.
A new owner at Orient cannot be ruled out too, but until that happens, some big calls need to be made and handing Webb a contract for next season would give everyone at the club a much-needed boost.
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