Kenny Jackett rues Orient finishing after stalemate against Mansfield

Posted Sunday, September 26, 2021 by PA

Kenny Jackett was disappointed with his side’s finishing after high-flying Leyton Orient were held to a 0-0 draw by 10-man Mansfield.

The Stags had Tyrese Sinclair sent off five minutes from time for kicking out at Theo Archibald, who forced an excellent save from visiting keeper Nathan Bishop in added time.

Referee Ben Speedie had turned down two penalty appeals for hand ball from the home side in the first-half and was again unimpressed when Ruel Sotiriou went down in the box late on.

“It was slightly frustrating for us at the end today. We couldn’t get that goal we needed,” admitted Jackett.

“I thought the first half was quite cagey but I thought second half we needed a little bit more. We saw that with the incisive chances we created in the final third without being able to find that final finish.

“We have to accept the referee’s decision on the two penalty decisions but I do believe that if you are creating those situations then ultimately the decisions will work for you.

“Whether they should have been given or not is irrelevant for me now because the referee didn’t give them but we have the players to keep creating those chances.

“We’ve got a good number of clean sheets now. We have been pretty solid and we have tightened up defensively.”

The result left Mansfield two points clear of the drop zone but manager Nigel Clough heaped praise on his side.

“I’m delighted with the clean sheet under the circumstances and thought we fully deserved our point this afternoon.

“The lads really stood up to the test and they were second in the league so we knew it was going to be tough and I thought we were excellent.

“We had the best chance in the first half but we’re not getting our shots off at the moment and even in the second half I thought we started well but the naivety amongst our players was evident yet again.

“Sinclair’s already won the free-kick but all of sudden he gets sent off and in the end, we are left hanging on.

“We made Orient have to work for every single chance they created today and didn’t give away any silly goals so that is good foundations to move on.”