Orients skipper Dean Smith said there will be no excuses next season if he does not take his side into the second division.

Smith, who took the captains armband from the unsettled Dominic Naylor a fortnight ago, believes nothing else will do. With the squad we have here we should certainly be in the top six or seven, he said.

We shot ourselves in the foot on a couple of occasions, notably against Rotherham and then Shrewsbury the other week, and we cannot afford to do that if we expect to get promoted.

It is not the first time Smith has captained a side. When he was at Walsall, he captained the first team aged just 20. It is nothing new to me, he added.

I feel I am well qualified for the job and the gaffer obviously thinks the same thing. My only ambition next season is to make sure we play to the best of our ability and with a bit of luck and hard work I know I can lead the side into Division Two.

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