ORIENT: Sean is as good as any midfielder in the league - Williams

9:10am Thursday 18th March 2010

By Ross Davies

MANAGER Geraint Williams claimed Orient’s Sean Thornton is ‘as good as anything in this league’ after the midfielder’s two-goal salvo against Walsall on Saturday ended the team’s eight-game search for a win.

The Irishman struck twice in ten second-half minutes to hand the O’s a vital win that keeps them at arm’s length from the League One drop zone.

“We all know he’s got that ability,” Williams said of Thornton. “When he gets up around the box he shows great calmness. A lot of players would have panicked there but that’s the quality Sean has. When he’s on top of his game he’s as good as anything in this league in midfield.”

The O’s boss was describing the number 10’s second strike, which came about after good work from the irrepressible Jonathan Téhoué. The ball eventually broke to Thornton on the edge of the box. The midfielder shaped to shoot, sending the defender sprawling, before cutting inside and caressing the ball into the far corner of the net.

His first goal was considerably easier, tapping in from close range after Blackburn Rovers loanee Aaron Doran saw his shot blocked, with the ball falling nicely for Thornton.

Two goals was the very least Orient deserved from the match. After a dressing down from the manager in midweek, following their capitulation against relegation-threatened Oldham, this was a team transformed.

Glenn Morris, standing in for the injured Jamie Jones between the sticks, may have expected a busy afternoon considering the team’s recent displays. But the only action he saw was a cross he palmed clear and a spot of kicking practice.

Although it was Thornton who grabbed the limelight with his goals, it was the contribution of Téhoué that really inspired Orient.

The striker appeared buoyed by the new two-and-a-half year contract he had signed two days before the game. So often the centre of attention up front, Scott McGleish was forced to play second fiddle to his strike partner, as Téhoué’s bustling, powerful style of play bullied Walsall into submission. He could have had a first-half hat-trick, but two snap-shots inside the box were well saved by visiting keeper Rene Gilmartin, while a third long-range effort was also repelled.

Williams was similarly impressed by the Frenchman’s contribution. “He’s getting stronger every week. In the second half he said he was shot to bits and he wanted to come off, but the next minute he’s striding past people like they’re not there. So if that’s him shattered then there’s an awful lot more to come.”

Brisbane Road was briefly transformed into the Nou Camp, as cries of ‘olé’ greeted every successful pass when it became clear the result was in the bag.

“They were booing us before,” laughed Thornton afterwards. “But that’s football. It’s so unpredictable. The fans enjoyed the game.

“Since Thursday and Friday we’ve been getting the team spirit and confidence back, and it showed.”