Leyton Orient’s unbeaten run came to an end last night as they fell to a 2-1 defeat away at Bromley.

Josh Coulson continued his remarkable scoring form, heading the O’s into a first-half lead that they held until the break, but a red card for Marvin Ekpiteta soon after the restart sparked a comeback, and second-half goals from Frankie Sutherland and Reeco Hackett-Fairchild won the game for the Ravens.

Justin Edinburgh made two changes to the side that were held to a goalless draw by Barnet at the weekend, bringing in Charlie Lee for Jobi McAnuff, who wasn’t risked after picking up a knock, and Jay Simpson also returned to the starting 11 in place of Josh Koroma, who dropped to the bench.

A lively start to the game saw both Hackett-Fairchild and Alex Lawless go into the referee’s book after just five minutes, and it was the O’s who created the first opportunity of the game but Coulson’s header from a James Brophy corner was hacked away.

JJ Hooper then created the hosts’ maiden chance, but his effort was dragged well wide following Luke Coulson’s long throw into the box.

The O’s showed why they’re top of the league just before half-time though as, without causing too much threat towards David Gregory’s goal throughout the half, they took the lead when Lee’s long throw was stabbed home by Coulson at the second attempt.

Both teams returned from the break unchanged, but within minutes Ekpiteta was on his way back to the changing room when he was shown a straight red card for a challenge on George Porter, which the referee deemed to be just inside the area, and Sutherland stepped up to convert and level the scores.

Bromley seemed to gain confidence from their man advantage and, less than 15 minutes after levelling the scores, they went ahead when a cross towards the far post was met by Hackett-Fairchild to nod home.

Orient went close following a lengthy pause for a foul on Koroma, with Coulson once again posing a threat in the Bromley penalty area, but his header this time was straight at Gregory.

At the other end seconds later, the home side missed the opportunity to add another when Richard Brindley rattled the bar from 25-yards.

The O’s continued to press for an equaliser into the seven minutes of additional time, but the closest they came was when Koroma played a short free-kick into Brophy who drilled a cross in for Macauley Bonne, but he couldn’t keep his effort down, and Dan Happe also missed a golden opportunity when he could only head wide from Brophy’s delivery.

Orient still sit atop the National League despite the loss, a point ahead of Salford City with a game in hand, and they will have the chance to re-establish a firmer lead this Saturday when they host FC Halifax Town at the Breyer Group Stadium.