Dale Gorman believes Leyton Orient have one of the brightest groups of young players outside of the Football League.

The O’s academy has produced a number of promising players since it opened, with the likes of Moses Odubajo, Steven Alzate as well as Tristan Abrahams all going on to forge careers in the Football League.

There are currently eight academy graduates in the club’s squad and head coach Justin Edinburgh has shown that he is not afraid to give young players an opportunity to impress, with Marvin Ekpiteta as well as Macauley Bonne, who are both in their early twenties, flourishing under the 48-year-old’s stewardship.

Gorman moved to Brisbane Road from Stevenage in the summer, another club who have forged a reputation of producing young talent, and made his first league start for the O’s last Saturday against AFC Fylde.

One of Stevenage’s biggest success stories was 18-year-old Ben Wilmot, who earnt a move to Premier League side Watford in the summer having proven himself to be one of the finest young talents in the Football League after making 15 appearances for the League 2 side last season.

Gorman also spent time in Stevenage’s academy as a youngster having moved to Lamex Stadium from Letterkenny Rovers in 2013.

However, the 22-year-old feels that Leyton Orient’s youth set-up is far superior to the League 2 side and says it is an exciting time to be at Brisbane Road.

He said: “Personally, I think Orient have a better set-up and there’s an opportunity for the younger ones. Including myself, we’ve got ten lads that are under the age of 22/23. There’s a lot of talent here and you’ll see it throughout the season.

"We’ve probably got one of the best groups of young lads in the league. Even if you went up to League 2, it would probably be the exact same. It’s a good set-up at Orient with the younger lads and it’s exciting to play for the club at the minute because the manager has shown he’s not afraid to throw in a few younger lads.”

Two academy graduates who have particularly excelled under Edinburgh are Myles Judd and Josh Koroma, who have been fixtures in the club’s starting line-up this season.

Judd has dislodged Sam Ling as Orient’s first choice right-back despite not being included in the match-day squad for the club’s first three league games, while Koroma has impressed up front alongside Macauley Bonne, scoring five times so far.

Another young player who has become a fixture in the O’s starting line-up is Ekpiteta, who was rewarded for his fine performances by being named as the National League’s Player of the Month for September.

Gorman believes the competition in the club’s squad has aided the young players and says no one’s spot in the starting line-up is safe under head coach Edinburgh.

He said: “I think the reason that people are doing so well at the minute is because they are playing against good people every day in training. It’s competitive and there’s nobody in the team that’s comfortable.

“You’re always on your toes thinking 'am I playing this week or am I not?' So, I think that pushes everyone on and there’s nobody sitting back and everyone’s on their toes and trying to make themselves as good as possible.”