Gary's angling for a place in the top three

14 April 2012

Gary Alexander has no trouble finding the net - on or off the pitch.

Leyton Orient's top scorer last season is also a keen angler and can regularly be found scouring the lakes of Surrey for carp.

The tranquillity of his waterside hobby stands in contrast to the physical exertion of the day job, but Alexander has proved adept at both. On top of 16 goals in his first campaign with Orient, the former Hull striker also bagged a 12lb carp - his biggest catch to date.

The 24-year-old said: "Fishing is a great way to relax and forget about all the other things that are going on. My uncle taught me how, though I've only recently started fishing for carp.

"They are probably the largest species there is in local lakes so me and a few mates have been going to fish for them at weekends in Surrey. You just sit and relax."

Alexander was arguably the biggest fish in Orient's rather tiddly pond last season and was rewarded with both the captaincy and a new three-year contract.

To provide fresh backing for his skipper, Martin Ling has been busy strengthening his squad this summer, adding four new players, including attacking midfielder Michael Simpson from Wycombe and striker Lee Steele from Oxford.

Alexander, who started his career at West Ham, said: "The four new faces have all done well. I've been impressed with what they have done in preseason-Michael Simpson, in particular, is good going forward and we also have David Hunt in midfield so we have no shortage of creativity."

Orient started and finished the season abysmally last year and it was only a fantastic run in the middle of the campaign that kept them out of relegation trouble.

After the club failed to win any of their opening 10 league games, Tommy Taylor was sacked as manager and replaced by Ling, who made an immediate impact.

His side were challenging for the play-offs in February, when the losing habit returned and they only won once in their final 15 league games.

Given that unwelcome sequence, followed by a summer clear-out and investment in new players, Ling will be under pressure to begin the League Two season strongly, starting at home to Macclesfield tomorrow.

The 38-year-old has a year left on his contract and knows that it will only be extended by chairman Barry Hearn if the club are challenging for promotion.

Alexander added: "The manager has shown great faith in me and some of the other players by giving us new contracts, so hopefully we can repay that faith by getting one for him.

"After what happened last year, it is really important that we start well. I think we may be a bit underestimated by people so, with a bit of consistency, there is no reason why we can't make the play-offs or even sneak a place in the top three." Steele, Simpson and defender Alan White, signed on a free from Oxford, are all set for their Orient debuts against the Silkmen.

Midfielder Wayne Carlisle, who has joined from Bristol Rovers, is available but is still recovering from injury and may not make the starting XI.

Leyton Orient v Macclesfield, Brisbane Road, tomorrow, 3pm

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Gary's angling for a place in the top three

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