Ruel Sotiriou spoils Exeter City’s party as his late strike hands Leyton Orient a 2-1 win… meaning no victory for hosts to toast 20 years of fan ownership
There has been a party atmosphere at Exeter City this week, toasting the fans
But Leyton Orient rode into town and spoiled celebrations with a 2-1 victory
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There would be no perfect finish to a week of celebrations for Exeter City and, after all they’ve endured since fans ousted rogue owners and started running the show for themselves, they probably did not expect one.
They have learned to consider the bigger picture in this corner of Devon so Ruel Sotiriou’s deserved winner for Leyton Orient in stoppage time will not knock them far from their stride, although it did knock them from the top of League One.
Exeter came into the game sitting higher in the English football pyramid than ever before, and the new heights seemed fitting in a week when they celebrated the 20th anniversary of the club’s supporters’ trust seizing control as they slid out of the EFL in 2003.
They unfurled a giant banner to mark the occasion before the game and wore the black third kit, sponsored by the Trust, but Gary Caldwell’s team never really got the party going.
‘Disappointing result, disappointing performance,’ said Caldwell. ‘Overall we got what we deserved and Orient deserved to win. I can’t get too cross with them, they’ve given so much but we dropped below our standards we’ve set.’
Perhaps it was the rare altitude or the emotion or the sweltering heat on a day when water breaks were required but it was probably more to do with the absence of half of a dozen players, two on international duty and others injured.
Orient, with boss Richie Wellens in the stands serving a ban, dominated and could easily have been out of sight by half-time, threatening from set-pieces. Omar Beckles and Brandon Cooper saw headers strike the bar from corners.
Sotirou turned a good chance wide from close range and Exeter’s stand-in goalkeeper Gary Woods made a couple of saves on his first appearance of the season. Woods, a former Os ‘keeper, was deputising for Viljami Sinisalo, on loan from Aston Villa and one of Exeter’s two Finland players called up for international duty. The other was winger Ilmari Niskanen.
With three away on international duty, EFL clubs can postpone a fixture but not with two, so 18-year-old Sonny Cox led the line for the home team and there was a league debut for 16-year-old Jake Richards. ‘It made it really difficult in terms of the players we could bring on,’ said Caldwell. ‘I don’t think we’ll finish another game this season with the team we had on at the end but that can’t be an excuse. We have to cope better as a squad.’
Richards showed his vision and range with a pass from midfield to release Demetri Mitchell to score the opener. Mitchell latched onto it and scored with a searing strike on the bounce from an angle. It screamed and dipped over goalkeeper Sol Brynn and in off the bar. ‘I thought the goal might spark us into life,’ said Caldwell but it didn’t and Orient, themselves no strangers to rotten owners posing existential threat, were soon level.
Joe Pigott took a fine cross by Jordan Graham down on his chest and slammed in a low finish on the half turn. It was Pigott’s first since signing from Ipswich in the summer.
Woods made a flying save to foil Cooper as the visitors pushed for the winner, and Pigott saw a header bounce into the turf and just over. Mitchell missed a tricky chance at the other end, heading into the side netting, before Sotiriou settled it, fizzing in Orient’s second from 25 yards in the second minute of added time.
‘We had a game plan and first half we were totally dominant,’ said Wellens. ‘We did all the basics right and the good thing is we can get so much better.
‘It was a big occasion, the 20th anniversary of a really, really good football club. They’re fan owned, they produce players and they’ve built a new training ground. It’s a really good model for a lot of football clubs so they should be proud of their day but we wanted to come here and spoil it.’
