Leyton Orient fans won’t have been sad to see the back of 2015. It will be a year remembered for last season’s relegation and a stuttering 2015/16 campaign despite a blistering start, not to mention the off-field issues.

It may be a new year but it was a familiar story for the O’s on Saturday as they laboured to a 2-2 draw on a very wet afternoon at Broadhall Way. Orient were handed an opportunity when they were awarded a generous penalty in the second half, which Jay Simpson tucked away.

However, they allowed their lead to slip away as their shaky defence buckled. Armand Gnanduillet exploited mistakes to turn the game around inside five minutes.

The O’s were heading for consecutive defeats but Simpson came to the rescue yet again with a dramatic equaliser in stoppage time.

The goal papered over the cracks of an uninspiring performance and some of the travelling fans called for Ian Hendon’s sacking at the final whistle.

It may be tempting to offer the difficult conditions or an extensive injury list as excuses for a poor performance but both factors applied to Stevenage as well.

Hendon’s decision to publicly blame his players is risky as it could damage already fragile confidence. His refusal to accept some responsibility is unlikely to improve fans’ perception of him either.

He emphasised the defensive work he has been doing in training, but the same problems remain which raises questions about the coaching. Just one clean sheet in 13 games suggests the problems aren’t entirely down to the personnel.

Hendon wants four or five new additions this month. The squad certainly needs strengthening, but is Hendon capable of finding the right players? His criticism of his summer signings certainly raises doubts about recruitment.

As things stand it is hard to be positive about Orient’s prospects for the year ahead.

The play-offs are currently within reach, but they won’t be for long if the O’s continue to fail to pick up wins. Teams around them also have games in hand which could mean Orient fall further behind.

There are few, if any, signs of improvement to suggest the manager will get things right if given time.

Hendon and his players talk about cutting out errors week after week but it doesn’t come to fruition on the pitch. For weeks now opponents have taken advantage of the same frailties.

There is also still cause for concern at the top of the hierarchy at the club. Francesco Becchetti’s actions following the victory over Portsmouth on Boxing Day were unbecoming of an owner of a football club and they attracted more negative attention. Despite grand ambitions when he took over, Orient have regressed under Becchetti’s stewardship. Can he make the correct decisions to take the club in the right direction?

Jay Simpson is the only real positive at the moment.

Not only did the 27-year-old recover a point for the O’s but his brace took his tally to 20 league goals, a remarkable achievement considering it is early January.

He is also the first Orient striker to reach the 20 goal mark in 38 years, putting him among a list of club legends such as all-time top scorer Tommy Johnston and the last man to surpass the tally, Peter Kitchen.

While it is fantastic to see Jay in such great form this season, Orient are currently almost entirely dependent on him for goals.

The O’s have scored 40 league goals so far this term and half of those have been scored by Simpson.

Dean Cox, Paul McCallum (who have been out of action for some time now) and Ollie Palmer have the next highest number of league goals in the O’s squad but they have managed just three each so far.

These statistics are worrying considering there is the possibility Simpson will be snapped up by another club during the transfer window.

Goalscorers aren’t easy to come by and Simpson’s record this term will have grabbed the attention of clubs in higher divisions.

It is hard to imagine Orient being able to find an adequate replacement for their top scorer and without him we would be in trouble.

The O’s don’t play another fixture until Saturday week which gives both Becchetti and Hendon time to make important decisions that will define our season and possibly determine whether 2016 will be remembered as a successful year.