BOSS Geraint Williams has praised Orient’s players for the way they have responded to his management style.

The O’s have taken giant strides to safety since he arrived at Brisbane Road, earning maximum points from games they have won by the narrowest of margins.

There seems to be a winning mentality in the squad now, and it is the players whom Williams believes deserve the credit for turning things around under his rule.

He said: "At a club, you want people who like winning and hate losing. We accept losing in the right way because you can’t win every game, but we do everything we can not to have that feeling.

"The players have shown the improvements. The players are the ones who are making it happen out on the pitch. What we’re trying to do is give them the opportunities, and it’s them who are taking them. I haven’t found any problems motivating them for any fixture and that’s a credit to the players.

"The whole of this squad is desperate to get on the pitch to show that they belong there, and do their best for Leyton Orient. Everyone comes in wanting to work hard."

And that industry has been clear for all to see in Orient’s defence.

The back four has been one of the meanest in League One all season, and is now the rock upon which the team can build winning performances.

Jordan Spence and Charlie Daniels make up one half of the back line.

Both say that a lingering fear of the dreaded drop keeps them on their toes, even though it looks like there is now just one relegation spot to be filled.

Central defender Spence said: "I don’t feel safe. I will feel safe when I know that it's mathematically impossible for us to go down. We’re on a great run but we had a hiccup a few games back against Hereford and Peterbrough.

It’s like the manager meant when he said to us that when you think you’ve cracked it, football can come and bite you on the backside. We are going to keep on going with the same attitude we have now, and hopefully we’ll stay up.

"There’s no easy games in this league but the imperative thing is that we make sure we’re alright. And we’ve been saying all season that as long as we play well, we fancy ourselves against anyone."

Left-back Charlie Daniels is wary of a rival team embarking upon a late upwards surge and is making no long-term plans.

He said: "We’re one of the top teams on form of late. There’s still games to go and there’s many more points available. If a team goers on a run, then you never know.

But we’ll keep on going and we're taking it one game at a time."