Charlie Lee says he is “devastated” to be out of the FA Cup after Leyton Orient were beaten 2-0 by Maidstone United on Saturday.

Goals from former Orient man Blair Turgott as well as Elliott Romain secured Harry Wheeler’s men a 2-0 win, sealing their progression to the first round of the competition at the Gallagher Stadium.

Lee was one of six changes made by Justin Edinburgh to the starting line-up after the midfielder was rested for Orient’s 0-0 draw with Hartlepool United last weekend, with the O’s head coach keen to preserve the 31-year-old’s fitness following the long-term knee injury he sustained last season.

The former Stevenage midfielder missed most of last season having ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in training last August, but has been a regular in the starting line-up this campaign, making 16 appearances in all competitions.

Lee returned to captain the side in place of Jobi McAnuff at Maidstone and partnered Alex Lawless as well as Dale Gorman in midfield, as Orient lined up in an unfamiliar 3-5-2 formation for Saturday’s game.

The stand-in skipper couldn’t hide his disappointment following the O’s exit after the full-time whistle and called on the side to react positively when they return to league action against Havant and Waterlooville at the Breyer Group Stadium on Saturday.

Speaking to Leyton Orient’s website, he said: “I’m really disappointed. I thought for the first 60 minutes we did everything right. I thought we played really well and didn’t make our dominance count.

“It was a poor goal to concede from our standards and then we never really recovered. We’re really disappointed to be out of the FA Cup and are desperate for Saturday to come as quickly as possible.

“We were really pleased with the first half performance, obviously apart from not scoring. We came out at the start of the second half and I thought we started excellently.

“From our corner, we’ve conceded a poor goal really and it was a poor reaction. It’s not what we’ve done at all since the manager came in last season and we’re not happy with it.

“I love the FA Cup and am devastated to be out of it. The manager is and all the players are. But it keeps our focus on the league now. It’s not ideal but we’ve got to focus on the positives and look for a reaction on Saturday.”