Kenny Jackett has spoke about Leyton Orient's tie away to Stoke City in the FA Cup Third Round, in which the O's lost by two goals to nil.

Jackett was left frustrated after his team bowed out the FA Cup at the bet365 Stadium, despite having a lot of chances to make their way through to round four. Aaron Drinan, Harry Smith and Ruel Sotiriou all had big chances go begging for Orient.

"If we had scored first it would have given us something to work towards and hang onto. We needed that first goal. We had several chances in that first period which we usually finish" said Jackett, as quoted in the Newham Recorder.

The Potters - who are pushing for a spot in the Championship Play-offs - opened the scoring through Tom Ince on the 43rd minute after the O's missed many chances in the first period. Tyrese Campbell then doubled the lead one minute from normal time and ensured Michael O'Neill's side had booked their spot in the hat for Round four.

When speaking about the penalty decision that Orient had turned away, the gaffer said "It did look a penalty, but the referee had none of it."

However, he did look positively on the remainder of the season. "There is a lot we can take into the rest of the season. If we can get somewhere near our best team out then we are a good side and can win consistent games.

"That is what we have to take out of this match because we did give Stoke a lot of problems."

The Verdict

As the old cliche goes, this could be a blessing in disguise for Leyton Orient, they are now out of all cup competitions and can put all their focus on trying to achieve a return to League One.

They currently sit in 10th place on 31 points, four points a drift of seventh placed Newport County, with two games in hand. An opportunity for a play-off place is definitely within reach, and that is now priority for Kenny Jackett.