ORIENT midfielder Jason Demetriou jetted back home this week and admitted he was disappointed not to have made his World Cup debut for Cyprus on Saturday. Demetriou was named as a substitute for Saturday night s clash against Montenegro in Larnaca, which

ORIENT midfielder Jason Demetriou jetted back home this week and admitted he was disappointed not to have made his World Cup debut for Cyprus on Saturday.

Demetriou was named as a substitute for Saturday night's clash against Montenegro in Larnaca, which ended in a 2-2 draw, writes TREVOR DAVIES.

"It was a great experience, but I was disappointed not to get on," Demetriou told the Recorder this week.

"Unfortunately, our goalkeeper was injured early on and so that filled one of the substitutes' slots and, as we were 2-0 up, I knew I would struggle to get on.

"But, at least I played in the warm-up game against Canada the previous weekend."

Demetriou came on at half time as Cyprus went down to a 1-0 defeat.

"That game went quite well but, for the World Cup game, there was a much bigger squad for the manager to choose from," reflected the 21-year-old Newham-born midfielder.

However, the experience of last weekend will live long in Demetriou's memory. "My mum and dad came out to see the game and it was a fantastic that they were there to support me," he said.

"It was an interesting experience, especially when our manager (Angelos Anastasiadis) was sent-off.

"The crowd went mad and were throwing things from the stands, so I just hid in the dug-out," he smiled.