Ethan Galbraith placed the ball on the spot.
The former Manchester United man took a deep breath and puffed out his cheeks. The hearts of everyone inside Edgeley Park skipped a beat.
With composure that belied the pressure of the situation, Galbraith then stepped up and sent Stockport keeper Corey Addai the wrong way to take Leyton Orient into the League One play-off final.
Galbraith wheeled away and his team-mates chased him across the turf as Orient boss Richie Wellens lost control of his emotions and went full Jose Mourinho by jumping into the stand where the away fans were housed. This was pure, unadulterated EFL.
‘It was unbelievable,’ Os midfielder Dom Ball tells Mail Sport when asked about the winning moment. ‘Just being involved in that game with the fans screaming throughout, it was incredible. And then being on the pitch for the penalties and sprinting after the players, they are the moments you live for.
‘All the hard work you put in, all the games, it’s all for that.’
Ethan Galbraith’s penalty at Stockport sealed Orient’s place in the League One play-off final
Os midfielder Dominic Ball (centre, No 15) led the celebrations as Galbraith’s penalty went in
Orient will now take on Charlton in the League One play-off final at Wembley on Sunday
After the on-pitch celebrations died down, Orient’s squad took a few moments to reflect in the dressing room as the magnitude of what they had achieved sunk in, before Wellens addressed his players.
The final destination of a memorable campaign comes on Sunday at Wembley when Orient face Charlton with the chance to return to the second tier of English football for the first time since 1982.
Wellens’ side are not done yet, but getting to this stage has already been an incredible achievement for a side that were in the relegation zone at the start of December.
Over the final 30 league games of the regular season, Orient picked up 61 points, second in that time only to runaway champions Birmingham.
But within the dressing room, Orient’s rise – which has come as a shock to many and seen them outperform several larger clubs with greater resources – is no surprise.
‘We were actually playing well, it just wasn’t clicking,’ says Ball, who has made 37 appearances since joining in September after leaving Ipswich last summer. ‘There were little things and fine margins where it can make a big difference. For example, let’s say we’d have 10 shots and concede one chance, we’d lose 1-0, but there were some really good bits of play.
‘It’s credit to the manager and the staff and also the players, because all of us together went: ‘What are we as a team? What are our strengths?’ So we have evolved within the season to be who we are now with a good environment, a good culture, and also the manager with his tactics and knowledge.
‘And we’ve just become very good at winning games and finding solutions within them.’
Ball (left) with team-mate Zech Obiero spoke exclusively to Mail Sport about Orient’s rapid rise
Manager Richie Wellens salutes the Orient fans at Stockport – when he took over in March 2022 the club were 21st in League Two and now stand just one match from the Championship
Ball is engaging and warm company and his passion for Orient shines through across our conversation.
Their success has been driven by Wellens, one of the brightest young managers in the EFL, but there has also been a canny use of the loan market.
Jamie Donley and Josh Keeley (both from Tottenham), Jack Currie (Oxford) and Charlie Kelman (QPR) have shone, while Dilan Markanday (Blackburn) has also had his moments.
Donley is highly rated at Spurs, but Kelman’s impact has surpassed all expectations, and he took the League One Golden Boot after notching 21 times, before then scoring twice against Stockport. Kelman has previously scored 18 goals in 134 career league games.
Alongside the loanees, several young talents such as Jordan Brown (23) and Ollie O’Neil (22) have had crucial roles to play but Wellens has blended these with an experienced core that includes Ball (29), veteran midfielder Darren Pratley (40) and Omar Beckles (33).
‘The best squads I’ve been in have had that balance of experienced players who have been there and done it (and the younger ones),’ says Ball, a former Tottenham academy graduate who has three career promotions to his name: one at Rangers and two with Ipswich.
‘The leaders within the group have shown what you need to do and been a bit of an inspiration to the younger lads. So the blend has been good and that’s what you need for a team that’s going to be up there.’
At 29, Ball, who has also played for QPR, Rotherham and Aberdeen, is by no means in the twilight of his career, yet it is clear he is relishing his leadership responsibilities.
Ball (pictured at QPR in 2020) has previously won promotion with Rangers and Ipswich (twice)
Ball (top right) was part of the Ipswich side that went from League One to the Premier League
Jamie Donley (No 17) is one of many young loanees to have shone for Orient this season
He is full of praise for the culture, spirit and resilience among Orient’s squad and six straight wins to end the regular season secured their spot in the play-offs.
But the midfielder, who has worked with Mauricio Pochettino, Kieran McKenna and Mark Warburton, has also relished the opportunity to play under Wellens.
‘One of the best things about the gaffer is he is so passionate and we see it every day in training,’ Ball says. ‘Then there is the football knowledge and the little tactical changes he makes for games.
‘You can see in the way we play, we go hard, we’re intense – and that is a reflection of the manager and his character.
‘Throughout the season, he’s also been great at dealing with the disappointment and expectation which has helped the lads. It’s taken that pressure off and you’ve seen a lot of players flourish.’
Orient’s squad were granted a few days off after their Stockport triumph, but for now full focus is on Sunday.
It is 11 years since Orient were last at this stage, when they lost on penalties to Rotherham. That summer, the ruinous ownership of controversial Italian Francesco Bechetti began as the Os tumbled out of the EFL three years later, so there is a sense of unfinished business among their fanbase.
The situation is completely different now, with an American group purchasing 78.55 per cent of the club last month, but long-serving chairman Nigel Travis – who led a consortium to rescue the club in 2017 – remains in his role.
QPR loanee Charlie Kelman has been inspired and he took the League One Golden Boot
Chris Dagnall is consoled in 2014 after Orient lose the League One play-off final to Rotherham
Ball (3rd right) is excited for Sunday and said it would be his greatest achievement if Orient win
Given what is at stake, it could prove to be a dream start for the new ownership, yet Ball is maintaining a focused but relaxed mindset.
‘I played an Old Firm game when I was 20 and was very nervous,’ Ball explains. ‘There were 60,000 fans at Hampden Park, millions of people watching and I remember thinking: ‘I’ve done everything I can to prepare for this game, this is what I worked my whole life for, this is all I care about so I’m going to enjoy this moment’.
‘That will be the approach I will take with a lot of the lads and even for myself, to enjoy it. You play your best football when you have a smile on your face.’
Ball is respectful and appreciative of the qualities Charlton possess, with the Addicks narrowly getting the better of Orient across both regular season fixtures, but he has confidence in his side when he steps out on the hallowed turf at Wembley for the first time in his career.
But, given all he has achieved and the fact Ball is chasing a third successive promotion, where would it rank if Orient did get the job done on Sunday?
‘I think it would top it all,’ says Ball, whose previous experiences of Wembley amount to attending England games in an attempt to go to the World Cup as a fan next summer.
‘From where we were it’s incredible we’ve got here, but we’re not finished. We want to get it done and get into the Championship – and I think we can do that.
‘Getting promoted at Wembley is probably all you could dream of as a young person and it would just be incredible.’
Charlton Athletic, and striker Matt Godden (No 24), stand in Orient’s way after beating Wycombe Wanderers in a tense semi-final second leg at The Valley last week
Blades endure bizarre start to huge week
There’s no doubt it’s a gigantic week for Sheffield United as they aim to return to the Premier League at the first time of asking in the Championship play-off final against Sunderland.
But the Blades endured a chaotic Monday afternoon when their X account was hacked and proceeded to share several bizarre and offensive posts about Barry Bannan, captain of arch-rivals Sheffield Wednesday.
‘OK I just love Barry Bannan,’ was one tweet, before the next one said: ‘I’m following everyone who trash talks Barry Bannan. I just figured out that he is from another club.’
Several posts were then reposted, including one labelling the Scottish midfielder a ‘bald fraud’, along with another calling him a ‘w****r’.
The club soon regained access and deleted all the posts before they apologised for any offence that had been caused.
Sheffield Wednesday’s Barry Bannan was subjected to abusive and bizarre tweets on Monday
Managerial merry-go-round is well underway
It might have gone unnoticed amid the drama of the play-offs, but the managerial merry-go-round in the EFL over the summer is well underway.
The precarious nature of life in the dugout is well-documented with just 29 EFL managers having been in their role for more than 12 months.
Since the regular campaign concluded we’ve already seen Hull City, Watford and Bristol Rovers sack their managers – and while the latter two have named replacements – the Tigers, West Brom, Norwich City, Cardiff City, QPR and Newport County are all currently searching for a new boss.
Relegated Southampton are also in the market for a head coach, and the futures of Ruud van Nistelrooy at Leicester and Danny Rohl at Sheffield Wednesday remain uncertain.
There could be more changes, but as always, this summer will be one to watch and things may be a lot different in EFL dugouts in 2025-26.
