Murray delighted with Stags' first month

Stags travel to London looking to bounce back from their first League defeat - a 2-0 loss at Plymouth Argyle last Saturday - and Murray said all the pressure would be on the O’s this weekend.

“They can’t fail this season,” he said. “The position they are in as a club, they put a lot of resources into it. They are a big club and they have to go up this season.

“These are two of the toughest away games and we get them out of the way early.

“I think if we are fresh and we are on it we are good enough to beat anyone in this league. We have got to go there with that mindset. We’ve got to go there to win the game.

“I came back last Saturday and kicked myself a bit as we did go there to win. But at times, especially in that first half-hour, we were wide open.

“That focus to go and win can sometimes leave you a little bit vulnerable. When you go to these big club you have got to be a little bit more secure in your thinking. But at the same time you have to pose a threat.

“I was talking to their staff afterwards and we were saying what a bonkers league it it. I think it’s going to be 15 or 16 teams going for the top seven this year.”

On the first month’s games, he added: “I’m over the moon. If we get something positive at Leyton Orient we are on play-off form.

“We are chuffed to bits with the start we’ve had. We always knew Saturday (at Plymouth) was going to be a tough one and we’d have to be on our mettle.

“In hindsight we’d have probably liked to have freshened it up a little bit more.

“First half we didn’t come out the blocks and we looked like we were still walking off the pitch on Tuesday night (the home win over Yeovil with 10 men). There was always going to be a risk of that. That’s not an excuse, that’s fact.

“Unfortunately we didn’t have the bodies in areas that we needed to be able to freshen it up. You ride it, you go through it.”

Stags are currently enjoying a much-needed week without a midweek game.

“The best part is being able to get back out on the training ground and work,” he said.

“When you are playing Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, it doesn’t allow you to improve on the training ground which I think is key.

“It’s the mental side of it more than anything – the ability to shut down from game mode for five days or seven days.

“We’ll be back on the field this week and implementing some things, not just for Saturday but for the bigger picture as I still think there area areas we need to improve.”