Byron Anthony has secured his future with Bristol Rovers after signing a new contract last night.

The Welsh central defender has been in talks with the club over a new contract which will keep him at the Memorial Stadium for the rest of this season and the next two years.

And ahead of tonight's trip to Leyton Orient, Anthony says he is looking forward to getting on with his career now the situation is resolved.

"I'm delighted to be extending my stay. We have managed to get everything sorted out this week and now I can settle down and concentrate on my football," said Anthony, who joined the club from Cardiff City in the summer of 2006.

"I've enjoyed my time here immensely.

"I didn't play much when I was at Cardiff but I've played more than 100 games for Rovers now.

"I don't think you can really say you are an experienced player until you've got past the 200 mark, but I'm learning all the time.

"You are never the finished article and I'm still only 25 so hopefully my best years are still ahead of me."

Anthony and his Pirates team-mates know an improved performance is vital at Brisbane Road tonight – to quickly erase the memories of the sub-standard display during Saturday's 3-2 home defeat by Wycombe.

"We spoke about it for a long time after the game on Saturday, and now we have got to put it behind us and concentrate on winning at Orient," he said.

The weekend defeat at the Memorial Stadium ended a run of five consecutive victories on home soil and left Paul Trollope's side eight points adrift of the top six.

And although they halted a run of six defeats on the road with a hard-earned point at Huddersfield a couple of weeks ago, they have not won an away game since their 3-2 triumph at Southampton on September 29.

"We don't want to fall any further behind because it's a difficult task as it is with some big teams ahead of us at the moment," said Anthony. "We don't want them pulling any further away.

"We did well at Huddersfield and put the losing streak we'd had away from home behind us. Hopefully we can get a good result tonight and then kick on.

"We've put a run together before and I'm sure we can do it again."

Boss Trollope acknowledged that his team had "a bad day at the office" against Wycombe – and insists they need to show their true colours in east London this evening.

"We will go down there with a point to prove both as a group and as individuals because that wasn't the real us on Saturday," he said.

"We want to get back to seeing a Bristol Rovers side that is full of commitment, drive and passion – and showing the skill we have got."

"We are capable of winning games, although at times this season we have shown a fragile side – which we did on Saturday.

"Orient have picked up some decent results recently and staged a good comeback at Carlisle on Saturday, so we know it's a tough test for us.

"But we are looking to bounce back after a very disappointing afternoon – and we need to get back on track quickly."

Rovers will again be without young winger Charlie Reece, who is continuing his recovery after tweaking a hamstring in a reserve team friendly last week.