Andy Hessenthaler said Leyton Orient’s fans “deserved more” after the side’s League Two promotion hopes were killed off on Saturday.

Lyle Taylor’s goal saw the east Londoners lose 1-0 against AFC Wimbledon on Saturday, a result which combined with Portsmouth’s 2-1 victory over Wycombe Wanderers means Orient can no longer make the play-offs.

After a season which has seen the O’s top the table in the opening month, Hessenthaler, who became interim manager following Kevin Nolan’s sacking earlier this month, said it was disappointing for all involved.

“A lot of things have gone on in the last few weeks,” he said.

“But it has been a 44-game season and we went from automatic promotion contenders to the bottom half.

“It is not good enough; it is very frustrating and not acceptable.

“The players are a family and they’re really unhappy. I’m also devastated for the fans, they deserve more as we should have been in the playoffs, minimum.

“We just lost our way and our confidence, not through lack of effort but lack of quality.”

Reflecting on their latest defeat, the fifth suffered by Orient in seven games, Hessenthaler said his team should have done better, but felt luck was not with them.

He said: “I can’t fault the lads for effort on a difficult surface and we had periods where we were okay against a really tough outfit.

“But unfortunately in the opposition box we were not good enough. We could have been out there all night and not scored.

“The ball was out of play for their goal, having seen it again. But sometimes they go against you and the ball should have been shut down.”