Dale Gorman will be assessed upon his return from international duty before a decision is made about his involvement in Leyton Orient’s match against Barnet this weekend.

The midfielder has been away on international duty over the past week with Northern Ireland’s Under-21s, captaining the side in their friendly against Luxembourg last Friday.

He also came on for the last 15 minutes on Tuesday night for Northern Ireland, helping Ian Baraclough’s side secure a famous 2-1 win over Spain, boosting their hopes of qualifying for the European Championships next summer.

Gorman arrived in East London from Stevenage during the summer but has been restricted to just two appearances from the bench so far, having missed the opening weeks of the season as he continued his recovery from a fractured ankle.

Alex Lawless has been named among Orient’s substitutes in the midfielder’s absence and assistant coach Ross Embleton hopes Gorman will be ready to kick on with the O’s after getting more minutes under his belt on international duty.

Asked whether Gorman would be assessed before a decision was made over his involvement against Barnet, Embleton said on Monday: “Certainly. That’s definitely one thing. He’s been dipped in front of everybody and everyone has had more of an opportunity to see what Dale is about. Similarly to Matt, he’s only come off the bench in short sharp spirts towards the back end of games.

“But I think the real positive for us is that he’s gone away and played 60 minutes the other night and he plays again tomorrow (Tuesday) out in Spain, so you’d like to think he’ll get another length of time. I think it shows Dale’s quality that he’s ended up captaining the team. It’s another big bonus and big step forward because if the previous games had been anything to go by, he’s only got on during those 10, 15 or 20 minute bursts.

“He’s gone away and got more minutes out on the pitch so hopefully he’ll come back confident, given the fact he’s gone and captained his country at Under-21 level. But he’s also coming back with minutes under his belt and ready to kick on.”