New writer, Phil Couldridge, has supported the O's since 1960 and has even worked as the Commercial Manager of the club between 1978 and 1983. In this article, he takes a personal look at Orient players who have featured for the east London side over the years. First up, Paul Went.
Paul Went featured for the O's at the start and tail end of his career and is still the youngest ever player to make his debut for the club - we became very good friends during his second spell at the club.
I remember him making his original debut at the tender age of 15 years and 327 days in 1965, the most common picture of him is running out in the blue shirt with a diagonal slash across his chest.
To be really honest, I don’t remember much of his first game - there was a guy who stood in front of me who was taller than me, which isn’t hard as I am not the tallest of people!
At that time I didn’t realise that in years to come I would be friends with that young player. I have now found it a sobering thought, that he was just over a year older than I was when he made his debut, and, it does bring home just how young these players are.
Paul made a name for himself as a half back (the modern term being midfielder) and with some good performances over the next couple of years, he became a much sort after player by other clubs.
As much as the club wished to keep him, as always, being a selling club and with the club in financial problems, he had to be sold in order for the club to survive, thus he transferred to Charlton Athletic for £24,500 (around £450,000 in todays money) and therefore saved the club from extinction.
He then went on to play for Fulham, Portsmouth, Cardiff City and finally returning to the Orient. This was a very good ,solid career for him and provided him with a good standard of living, doing what he loved, playing football.
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