Richie Wellens relieved to see Leyton Orient avoid Harborough shock

Head coach Richie Wellens was relieved to see Leyton Orient come away with a 5-1 victory over Harborough at the BetWright Stadium.

Goals from Idris El Mizouni (2), Armando Dobra, Aaron Connolly and Tony Springett turned a potentially tough afternoon into a relative comfortable one.

Wellens admitted there was little upside for his outfit in the game – and even likened it to when Manchester City played at Brisbane Road in 2025.

He said: “We have nothing to gain from today, and they have everything to gain. It’s all about us getting to the next round.

“I thought we started the game well, we were comfortable with the ball. When we moved it around it was difficult to them in the spaces.

“It’s like when Manchester City and Pep Guardiola came here, he was thinking just to get away from here with a win.”

Dobra opened the scoring after just six minutes when heading home a Fin Stevens cross. After Jaze Kabia hit a post, Connolly doubled the lead on 25 minutes after picking up a short free-kick from Alex Gilbert.

El Mizouni sealed the game on 50 minutes, although Harborough fans saw Paul Malone turn in a consolation, before sub Springett and a second El Mizouni effort sealed the win.

Harborough manager Mitch Austin admitted it was a tough afternoon for his side.

He said: “It’s the kind of fixture where you probably need a lower-end League One side who are not in the best of form.

“Unfortunately for us, we had Leyton Orient who are pretty good – the gap between the three levels is always going to show through.

“I think we were slower, we’re not as good. Our goal gave us 10-15 minutes of momentum.”