James Alabi couldn’t hide his relief after netting his first goal for Leyton Orient and thanked his teammates for their support after a tough few weeks for the striker.

The 23-year-old was back in action last Saturday having missed the matches against Dover Athletic, Chesterfield and Solihull Moors through suspension, after being sent off against Gateshead at the end of August.

That red card capped off a tough start to life at Brisbane Road for Alabi, who had failed to score in his first six games for the club after moving to East London from Tranmere Rovers in the summer for an undisclosed fee.

But the striker is now off the mark for the O’s after he stepped off the bench to bundle home a late equaliser against FC Halifax Town on Saturday, leading to wild celebrations from both players and supporters.

That strike was Alabi’s first goal for almost ten months, having scored just once last season against Eastleigh back in November during a loan spell with Dover.

The 23-year-old is now hoping kick to kick on with the O’s and said a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders after scoring his first goal for the club.

Speaking to Leyton Orient’s website, Alabi said: “It was a brilliant time to get it. Any time would have been great but I’m pleased to get it so we weren’t on the end of a defeat.

“Obviously it’s been a tough start with me getting a red card a couple of games ago, so I had to make sure that when I came back in, I did well and kept my head down. So, scoring was just a relief and a lot of weight off my shoulders too. I was thankful to the team for showing their support and celebrating with me.”

On the performance against Halifax, Alabi added: “We were playing really good football and had them penned in during the first half. Second half, we were moving the ball well and just had to get the finishing touch and I’m happy that I got it at the end.”