Leyton Orient....................1

Rotherham Utd.................4

(Nationwide League Div Three)

Toby Forage reports

WHAT a disaster. Having played out of their skins for the last two games, Orient decided that enough was enough and reverted to putting in one of their worst performances of recent times.

That was exactly what boss Tommy Taylor thought as well. He said it was the poorest performance he had witnessed since his time at the club and to his credit, he offered no excuses. There were none.

The O's simply did not play. They were a set of individuals, none of whom had any idea what was going on.

Dire was the only word to sum up the performances of all the players, from No1. to No.11. None was blameless for a shambolic display.

But it could all have been so different. Rotherham were put under a lot of early pressure, but despite several chances, most of which were created by Matthew Lockwood, they never came close to finding the net.

It looks like he could be on his way, though, playing only temporarily for the club and without him, the scariest thought is that the O's would have been even worse.

Rotherham got their first chance from a free kick which Steve Thompson crashed against an upright. From then on, the tone was set.

Orient had a couple more token chances to go ahead but predictably made nothing of them and on 33 minutes, Rotherham went ahead. Andy Roscoe, who was quick and deadly on the left flank for the Millers, crossed for Darren Garner whose header looped over Chris Mackenzie who was stranded off his line.

Two minutes later, Lee Glover scored, turning Simon Clark in the box before firing home, at the second attempt.

Orient's best chance came when they were awarded a penalty five minutes before the break when Alan Knill tripped Lockwood in the box as he and Jason Harris fought to get a goal.

The ever reliable Dean Smith stepped up to take the spot kick, but Michael Pollitt, who had looked shaky from the start, guessed right and deflected it on to a post from where it rebounded back into his arms. The luck was certainly not with the O's and Pollitt, though he was distinctly dodgy, made the saves when he needed to.

Harris saw a header whistle over the bar, but when the second half started, it was Rotherham who looked brighter.

However, Smith made amends for the penalty miss when he rose majestically to power home a header from Kwame Ampadu's corner on 64 minutes.

Sadly, his defending was not as majestic and three minutes later, Jamie Ingledow, Rotherham's 17-year-old right back, appeared from nowhere to turn the O's inside out and fire home his side's third goal. I t was a wonderful finish, and when Ingledow was seen carrying the boots and dirty kit back to the team bus after the match, it must have been all the more galling for Orient fans.

Roscoe curled in a free kick from the edge of the box to complete the rout after Clark, who was booked, had scythed down Jason White.

"Get your cheque book out, Mr Hearn," were the cries from the terraces, but Taylor said he is not looking for any new blood just yet.

"We have a squad here capable of doing the job," he said. "We have got injuries at the moment, but these lads are professionals. They have to play better than that, that's all there is to it. You don't become a bad defensive side in one season, which is what we were today."

Rotherham manager Ronnie Moore could not believe his luck. "It's a fortress here," he said. "I am delighted to have won so well."

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