Two points dropped for Stockport after late Orient equaliser

Leyton Orient 2 - 2 Stockport County 

County were left frustrated after conceding a stoppage-time equaliser in a 2-2 draw with Leyton Orient

Author | Alan Thompson 

Stadium | Brisbane Road

A break in play

County looked set for a valuable three points after first-half goals from Nathan Lowe and Joseph Olowu had put them firmly in control. But Orient hit back after the interval, with Aaron Connolly reducing the deficit before Ollie O’Neill’s dramatic late strike denied Stockport the win.

A closer look at what happened in London

Dave Challinor’s side, unchanged from their last league outing, had to weather some early pressure from the hosts before Lowe made the breakthrough on 29 minutes. Introduced from the bench, the midfielder rose well to meet Corey O’Keefe’s cross and guided a header beyond Tommy Simkin.

READ MORE | Stockport progress in Carabao Cup

Stockport’s travelling supporters had more to cheer just seven minutes later. Olowu, already proving a threat at set pieces, launched himself at an Ollie Norwood delivery and powered home a diving header to double the lead.

The visitors could have gone in three up at the break when Olowu again found himself in space, only to see his close-range effort blocked by Simkin during a goalmouth scramble.

Orient grew into the contest in the second half and were handed a lifeline when Connolly finished neatly from O’Neill’s pass on 57 minutes. Stockport defended resolutely as the clock ticked down, but seven minutes of added time proved costly. O’Neill found a gap in the backline to level deep into stoppage time, leaving County to reflect on two points dropped rather than one gained.

Stockport County miss out on statement win

Teams walk out pre match

After the heartbreak of losing to Orient in last season's play-off semi-final, winning here would have been a huge statement of intent for County. 

They played very well for most of the game but Orient's overall quality turned out to be good enough on the day to earn them a point. 

One Stockport fan who was in the away end told us: "It's frustrating that we didn't get the win but that was a good performance from us. We've had a good start to the season and it looks like we've recovered well from how last season ended."