ORIENT boss Martin Ling insisted that Orient's workout against Tottenham on Wednesday was a beneficial exercise despite the final 5-1 defeat.

He looked to the positives of a super first half performance and said he had learned valuable lessons about his team.

"We were playing a quality side and we lived with them for 45 minutes," he said. "We went in leading the game and that was deserved at that stage.

"But we also learned that when you make mistakes and are poorly organised from a corner, teams like Tottenham will punish you.

"Our players were still prepared to fight at 4-1 and 5-1 down and you learn more about them in that situation than when you're winning 1-0 in the first half."

Jason Demetriou caught the eye with his first half showing and Ling was quick to praise the 20-year-old midfielder.

"The first half was excellent and Jason Demetriou scored the best goal of the night.," he said.

"If you look at that first half, he wouldn't have looked out of place in their team.  The boy can go right the way to the top if he has a little bit of luck and keeps his determination and dedication."