Leyton Orient 1 - 1 Exeter City
Coca-Cola League One

ORIENT are still looking for their first home win of the season after Craig Noone's late leveller for Exeter City pegged them back at Brisbane Road on Saturday.

Just as against Carlisle in their last E10 outing, Orient, leading through Charlie Daniels' deflected first half goal, looked set to take maximum points as the game entered its closing stages.

But Noone's speculative 77th minute effort caught Glenn Morris out in the Orient goal and gave the Grecians a share of the points.

The O's were punished for not turning a dominant first half into more goals, but having seen Scott McGleish rattle the crossbar after the break, Geraint Williams' side could count themselves unfortunate not to have ended that wait for home success.

Three minutes in Adrian Patulea won a corner off Troy Archibald-Henville and then nodded over after rising to meet Jason Demetriou's delivery in the middle.

McGleish then headed wide from another Demetriou corner as Orient looked to make headway early on.

Jimmy Smith was next to try his luck, fizzing a volley wide of the far post after his run from midfield was picked out by Stephen Purches.

Orient's corners were looking particularly threatening, and Smith might have done better in the 13th minute when he headed another Demetriou cross wide at the near post.

The O's needed a goal to make their early pressure count and it arrived, with a bit of luck, in the 26th minute.

Exeter defender Troy Archibald-Henville barged Adrian Patulea in the back as the pair tussled for a header 25 yards from goal and Demetriou touched the free kick to Daniels, whose low drive took a deflection, wrongfooted keeper Oscar Jansson and nestled in the bottom corner.

Ten minutes later Ryan Harley made a good run into the Orient box from his midfield position and clipped a left-footed shot wide.

Exeter had hardly threatened, but the fashioned a good chance to level right on half time when Stuart Fleetwood ran in behind Ben Chorley and cut the ball back for Harley, whose tame shot was easily gathered by Glenn Morris.

Orient made two changes at the break, with Andrew Cave-Brown and Kristian O'Leary replacing Stephen Purches and Adam Chambers, but it was Harley who was soon back in the action, sending in a shot from 25-yards that whistled wide of Morris' post.

It signalled a good start to the second period for the visitors, but Orient so nearly grabbed a second on 55 when McGleish took aim from range and almost caught Jansson out, but the Grecians stopper managed to claw the ball onto the crossbar.

Midway through the half Demetriou made a superb run through the middle before laying off for JJ Melligan, whose shot was beaten away at his near post by Jansson.

Patulea then nodded Melligan's left wing cross off target under pressure from Archibald-Henville as Orient upped the pressure in searching for a second.

But 13 minutes from the end, Orient were dealt a hammer blow when Noone delievered a cross from a long way out that deceived Morris and ended up in the net as the O's stopper tried desperately to keep it out.

O'Leary saw an injury time volley fly into Jansson's hands but there was to be no late drama on another frustrating Brisbane Road afternoon.

Leyton Orient: Morris; Purches (Cave-Brown 46), Mkandawire, Chorley (Ashworth 70), Daniels; Melligan, Chambers (O'Leary 46), Smith, Demetriou; McGleish, Patulea
Subs: Jones (GK), Jarvis, Scowcroft, Townsend

Goal: Daniels 26

Booked: Demetriou

Exeter: Jansson; Duffy, Taylor,, Achibald-Henville, Seaborne; Sercombe (Stansfield 61), Harley, Russell, Noone; Stewart, Fleetwood (Corr 74)
Subs: Marriott (GK), Tully, Cozic, Edwards, Logan

Goal: Noone 77

Booked: Russell, Duffy

Referee: Keith Hill

Attendance: 4,703 (608 away)