STRIKER Scott McGleish gave this frank assessment on the O's performance when he spoke to leytonorient.com following the 2-0 defeat at Dagenham & Redbridge on Saturday.

Scott, A frustrating result for us after two excellent results leading up to the game?

"Yes and I think it was the manner of our performance that was the more frustrating. We got what we deserved and that was nothing. After the last few results, it was a bit of a step back. It was the way we played, we weren't expecting this outcome and they showed a lot of passion. That style of play is very effective for them and we got sucked into it and they will win a lot of games playing like that."

After the midweek win at Brighton, the manager readily acknowledged that he knew it would be a difficult game against Dagenham given their style of play...

"Yes, we knew what to expect but it's difficult when you are playing against a team with such a high tempo. If you can weather the storm early on, particularly away from home, you give yourselves a chance to settle but they scored after eight minutes in the first half and again early on in the second half and that gave them something to hold onto. They got what they deserved which was three points and zero for us."

They made it really difficult for us, we couldn't get the ball down and play which is our natural game and they put lots of balls in and over the top...

"Exactly, any balls up to the forwards was a fight ball. They seemed to get balls into their bodies and into the channels and they were getting onto them. We were trying to pass it around 15 minutes before the end of the first-half but we didn't really get our passing game going at all really.

"I think we thought we could come to Dagenham, pass it around and that would work but we weren't able to do that. In the end, we were just banging balls forward to Revs and myself up front but they either kept getting cut short or it was going through to their keeper."

The two goals we conceded were disappointing, two free headers...

"Yes, we've talked about that, their midfielder has come from deep and we didn't have a runner to take him but there was a culmination of errors. The throw-in, the time their player's had on the ball before putting his cross in. It wasn't just one thing, there were a few things wrong with their first goal.

"For their second one, the fella has put in a great corner and Arber has got up at the back stick, which he does well, and got it back across goal and they've reacted first. From three yards out, there wasn't a lot Jonesy could do about it."

We had an appeal for a penalty turned down around the hour mark, what was your view of that?

"I couldn't actually tell if it had hit their player's hand but the way he came across, if the ball did hit his hand, then it must be a penalty. When you go full-length and you are lying on the floor and you are looking to create a bigger barrier with your arms, then if the ball hits, it is intentional and it's a penalty. But the ref didn't give it and so we have to get on with it."

We've had a mixed bag of results so far this season, how do we get more consistency?

"That's the nature of football no matter what league you are in, you can be up one minute and then down in the dumps the next. We need to grind out performances like Dagenham did on Saturday and like we did at Southampton. "

Another tough one coming up this Saturday when we play Huddersfield?

"it will be a different style of game, they are all about pass quickly and move and we have to make sure that we are on our game and certainly better than we were against Dagenham. We might be able to get our passing game going and it's going to come down to who wants it the most as it does most weeks."

Scott McGleish was talking to Matt Hiscock