Leyton Orient head coach Richie Wellens is calling for his team to be ruthless after their losing run continued with a 1-0 defeat at Rotherham.
The Londoners were consigned to a fourth straight loss by Jayden Sweeney’s 60th-minute own goal, leaving them five points off the play-off places in League One.
Orient had chances to go in front but Dan Agyei could not add the finishing touch to his menacing runs, while Charlie Kelman should have netted a late leveller when Jamie Donley cleverly found him in space but he missed the target with only the goalkeeper to beat.
Wellens said: “It’s really frustrating. We weren’t ruthless enough and I warned the players at half-time that they thought it was too easy.
“With all the possession we had we didn’t make enough chances and against a team like Rotherham you’re always one set play or long ball away from giving the game away and that is ultimately what happened.
“I thought we responded well and played some good stuff in the last 20 minutes but for the chances we had, we shouldn’t be losing this game.
“There was too much pass, pass, pass. You have got to be ruthless and play forward quicker.
“Too many times it broke down. It’s a disappointing evening because the performance should have seen us get something out of the game.”
The decisive moment came on the hour mark when Hakeem Odoffin’s header fell the way of Louie Sibley and his low effort took a touch off Sweeney to nestle in the bottom corner.
That made it back-to-back wins for the Millers and manager Steve Evans is feeling more hopeful for the future.
He said: “I think we’ve been really good and should have won more convincingly at Bristol (Rovers on Saturday).
“We rode our luck a little bit and they rode their luck a little bit.
“There were two or three things I wanted to tweak at half-time and I think second half we were very, very good.
“I think when we scored we took over the game. We put them to the sword but never added to the goal tally.
“There is a lot here to build on but there is a lot to turn around.
“Louie does great for the goal. We gave him the brief at half-time to drop in those areas.
“I think he played like the Louie I really loved. It was a really energetic performance.”
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