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Brentford F.C.

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Brentford
File:Brentford.png
Full nameBrentford Football Club
Nickname(s)The Bees
Founded1889
GroundGriffin Park
Brentford, London
Capacity12,763
OwnerBees United Supporters' Trust
ChairmanGreg Dyke
ManagerAndy Scott
LeagueLeague One
2009–10League One, 9th

Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One. They were founded in 1889 and play their home games at Griffin Park, their home stadium since 1904. Brentford's most successful spell came during the 1930s, when they achieved consecutive top six finishes in the First Division. Since the War, they have spent most of their time in the third and fourth tiers of English football. Brentford have been FA Cup quarter-finalists on four occasions, and have twice been Football League Trophy runners-up. Some their most notable players in the last 10 years include: D.J. Campbell, Michael Turner, Stephen Hunt, Charlie MacDonald and Kevin O'Connor.

History

Foundation to 1939

Founded in 1889 to serve as a winter pursuit for the Brentford Rowing Club, the club spent its early years in the lower divisions of the Football League and achieved little of note, save for a move to its present day home ground, Griffin Park, in 1904. In 1920, it was a founder member of the Third Division South. During the late 1920s and 1930s, the club began to make real progress. In the 1929-30 season, the side won all 21 of its home matches in the Third Division South, but still missed out on promotion. They are the last of six teams in English football to amass a perfect home record, and the only one to do so over a season of 42 matches or more. After several more near-misses, promotion to the Second Division was finally achieved in 1932-33. Two years later, Brentford reached the First Division and finished 5th in its debut season - which is still the club's highest ever league position - to complete a remarkable rise for the club. Brentford achieved more impressive placings in the league for the rest of the decade (6th in the following two seasons) before the Second World War interrupted.

1945-1989

League positions since the 1920-21 season.
Note - Dotted horizontal lines indicate league divisions.
Note - From 1920-1958 the 3rd tier was split into North and South divisions, graph indicates Brentford's position in the South division

During the war, Brentford competed in the London War Cup, losing in the 1941 final at Wembley Stadium to Reading and winning in the final against Portsmouth a year later. The club was relegated in the first season after the War, and a downward spiral set in, which culminated in relegation to the Third Division in 1953-54 and the Fourth Division in 1961-62. The survival of Brentford FC was threatened by a projected takeover by Queens Park Rangers in the late 1960s - a bid that was only narrowly averted with an emergency loan of £104,000 - while the club continued to yo-yo between the third and fourth divisions during the next three decades. The club won promotion in 1962-63, 1971-72 and 1977-78 but only on the final occasion was it able to consolidate its place in English football's third tier. Other bright spots in this period included reaching the final of the Freight Rover Trophy at Wembley in 1985, where it lost to Wigan, and a run to the FA Cup quarter-finals in 1989 which included wins over three higher-division sides and was only ended by the reigning league champions Liverpool.

1990 to present

After a 45-year absence, Brentford were promoted back to the Second Division (renamed the First Division with the advent of the Premier League in 1992) in the 1991-92 season as Third Division champions, though they were relegated again the following year.

There followed several seasons of the club narrowly missing out on promotion. Former Chelsea FA Cup hero David Webb was appointed manager in 1993 and twice led the side into the play-offs. In 1996-97 he led them to the play-off final at Wembley, but the side were beaten by Crewe Alexandra. The club were then relegated to the Third Division (by then the bottom division of the Football League) the following year. Brentford won promotion as champions again in 1998-99 under manager and chairman Ron Noades.

The club suffered more promotion agony in 2002 under manager Steve Coppell as they lost out to Stoke City in the play-off final having been just minutes away from automatic promotion on the final day of the season, and again under manager Martin Allen in 2004-05, on that occasion losing 3-1 on aggregate to Sheffield Wednesday in the semi-finals after finishing 4th in League One.

Former BBC Director-General and Bees fan Greg Dyke was announced as chairman of Brentford on 20 January 2006 as part of the takeover by Bees United, the Brentford Supporters Trust. On 28 January 2006, Brentford beat Premier League strugglers Sunderland 2-1 in the 4th Round of the FA Cup, but lost 3-1 to another Premier League club Charlton Athletic in the 5th Round. Brentford finished 3rd in the league and lost to Swansea City in the play-off semi-final.

On 30 May 2006 Allen announced his resignation as manager of Brentford[1] and the club named Leroy Rosenior as his successor on 14 June 2006. On 18 November 2006, following a run of 16 matches without a win - leaving the side in the relegation zone - Rosenior was sacked as manager, after the team lost 4-0 at home to Crewe. Following Rosenior's departure, youth team coach Scott Fitzgerald was appointed manager on a full-time basis on 21 December 2006 with Alan Reeves acting as his assistant.[2] Fitzgerald was unable to turn around the club's fortunes, and Brentford were relegated to Football League Two - English Football's 4th tier - in April 2007. Fitzgerald left the day following confirmation of Brentford's relegation, with youth team manager Barry Quin due to act as caretaker in the managerial role until the end of the season.[3]

Ex-England captain Terry Butcher was appointed as manager on 24 April 2007. Butcher's assistant was former Brentford winger Andy Scott, who was appointed on 9 May 2007. Butcher's reign at Griffin Park was, however, not a successful one, and his contract was terminated by mutual consent on 11 December 2007[4], after winning just 5 matches in 23. Butcher's assistant Andy Scott was appointed as manager on 4 January 2008 following a successful caretaker spell. (Scott's assistant is the experienced coach Terry Bullivant).

On 25 April 2009 Brentford sealed the Coca-Cola League Two Championship (English Football's 4th tier) with a 3-1 win at Darlington. The Bees were awarded the Trophy in front of 10,223 fans at Griffin Park on May 2. They were the second team (after Doncaster Rovers) to win the fourth tier three times, and the first to win the tier under its three names (Fourth Division, Division Three and League Two).

Scott's excellent first calendar year in charge was recognised with an award, the BBC London 'Manager of the Year 2008'. Scott was also awarded the 'Coca Cola League Two Manager of the Month' award for April/May 2009, which recognised the above title was won in difficult circumstances; with 4 strikers hospitalised in 8 games.

During the 2008-09 campaign, three players also picked up awards:

  • Marcus Bean — 'Powerade Player of the Month' for League Two December 2008
  • Charlie MacDonald — 'Powerade Player of the Month' for League Two February 2009
  • Jordan Rhodes — League Two 'PFA Fans' Player of the Season 2009' and League Two 'PFA Fans' Player of the Month' March 2009.

2009-10: A total of 13 new players were bought in, mostly on free transfers.

On 5 August 2009, the amalgamation of fans' groups which help run the club - Bees United - announced they had ".. negotiated terms with Matthew Benham that will enable BU to continue in its role of ensuring the club is governed well, of protecting the long term interests of Brentford Football Club, and of giving you, our members, the right of veto over any unreasonable sale of the ground in which Brentford plays, so long as Brentford FC remains solvent".

The 2009-10 season has been regarded as great success, with BFC finishing 9th in Coca Cola League One. A shaky start led to changes in personnell, noteably loanees from Arsenal (Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny) and Tottenham Hotspur (winger John Bostock). While the other promoted teams struggled, Brentford thrived, thanks to excellent home form, (Brentford have only lost four home league games in two years) and some impressive displays against the richer clubs in the division (e.g. Leeds United, Norwich City, Southampton & Huddersfield Town). A new CEO was appointed, Andrew Mills.

Grounds

Griffin Park

Main article: Griffin Park

Brentford have played at Griffin Park since 1904. The ground is unique in British football in that there is a pub in each corner of Griffin Park, Royal Oak, New Inn, The Griffin - which was used in the film Green Street - and The Princess Royal which is owned by the club.

In 2007 The Ealing Road end of the ground has had a roof installed after a grant by the Football Trust and makes all 4 stands of the ground covered. The Ealing Road remains a terrace but has been "given back" to home supporters and was re-opened for the first game of the season of the 2007/08 season on Saturday 11 August 2007 against Mansfield Town (4,909 watched the game).

The dug-outs will be switched from the Braemar Road side of the ground to the Bill Axbey side for the 2010/11 season.

The Braemar Road stand will be renamed the Bees United stand for the 2010/11 season. The stand opposite is called The Bill Axbey stand. The away fans' end is known to Brentford fans as 'The Wendy House'.

(A fan's guide to Griffin Park can be found at Duncan Adams's website www.footballgroundguide.co.uk)

Lionel Road

Main article: Brentford Community Stadium

Brentford, with the aim of securing a more financially sustainable future, have been considering relocation since 2002. Plans were announced in October 2002 for a new 20,000 capacity stadium at a state-of-the-art arena complex in Lionel Road, Brentford. It was announced on 7 December 2007 that the club had secured an option to purchase the site - a major breakthrough in the club's plans to relocate.[5]

The new stadium moved another step closer on 22 February 2008 when it was announced that Brentford's development partner, Barratt Homes, had acquired a 7.6 acre regeneration site in Lionel Road, Brentford.[6] Following this news, it was anticipated that the stadium would be completed in time for the 2012/13 season, and be used as a training venue for teams participating in the 2012 Olympic Games in London. However, due to the on-going economic downturn and fall in property prices, the club and Barratt Homes admitted in early 2009 that this date would no longer be feasible.

Current squad

As of 23rd July 2010

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK England ENG Richard Lee
2 MF Ireland EIR Kevin O'Connor (captain)
3 DF England ENG Craig Woodman
4 MF England ENG Marcus Bean
5 DF Scotland SCO David McCracken
7 MF England ENG Sam Saunders
8 FW England ENG Nicky Forster
9 FW England ENG Carl Cort
10 FW England ENG Charlie MacDonald
11 MF England ENG Myles Weston
12 DF Ireland EIR Michael Spillane
No. Pos. Nation Player
13 MF England ENG David Hunt
14 FW England ENG Kirk Hudson
16 MF England ENG Sam Wood
17 DF England ENG Ryan Blake
20 MF France FRA Toumani Diagouraga
21 GK England ENG Simon Royce
22 DF England ENG Karleigh Osborne
31 GK England ENG Simon Moore
32 DF England ENG Leon Legge
— FW England ENG Gary Alexander

Coaching staff

As of 1st July 2010
Name Role
England Andy Scott Manager
England Terry Bullivant Assistant Manager
England Simon Royce Goalkeeping Coach
England Michael Preston Physiotherapist
England Alisdair Lane Fitness Coach
England Ose Aibangee Director of Youth Development
England Darren Sarll Reserve & Youth Team Manager
England David Carter Kit Man / Chef

Managers

As of 5 April 2010. Only competitive matches are counted.

Name Nat From To Record
P W D L Win %
William Lewis England August 1900 May 1903
Dick Molyneux England August 1903 May 1906
W G Brown England August 1906 May 1908
Fred Halliday England August 1908 May 1912
Ephraim Rhodes England August 1912 May 1915
Fred Halliday England August 1915 August 1921
Archie Mitchell England August 1921 December 1922 60 22 13 25 37
Fred Halliday England December 1924 May 1926 68 22 12 34 32
Harry Curtis England May 1926 February 1949 705 305 157 243 43
Jackie Gibbons England February 1949 August 1952 150 53 40 57 35
Jimmy Bain England August 1952 January 1953 23 7 5 11 30
Tommy Lawton England January 1953 September 1953 33 8 10 15 24
Bill Dodgin, Sr. England October 1953 May 1957 182 65 57 60 36
Malcolm MacDonald Scotland May 1957 January 1965 379 160 94 125 42
Tommy Cavanagh England January 1965 March 1966 46 16 10 20 35
Billy Gray England 1 August 1966 30 August 1967 48 19 13 16 40
Jimmy Sirrel England 1 September 1967 30 November 1969 111 45 26 40 41
Frank Blunstone England 1 December 1969 11 July 1973 164 67 35 62 41
Mike Everitt England 1 September 1973 15 January 1975 70 21 22 27 30
John Docherty Scotland 20 January 1975 7 September 1976 69 23 20 26 33
Bill Dodgin, Jr. England 16 September 1976 1 April 1980 166 71 35 60 43
Fred Callaghan England 1 April 1980 2 February 1984 176 59 52 65 32
Frank Blunstone England 2 February 1984 9 February 1984 1 0 0 1 0
Frank McLintock Scotland 9 February 1984 1 January 1987 151 51 43 57 34
Steve Perryman England 1 January 1987 15 August 1990 182 71 48 63 39
Phil Holder England 24 August 1990 11 May 1993 158 66 33 59 41
David Webb England 17 May 1993 4 August 1997 216 85 65 66 39
Eddie May England 5 August 1997 5 November 1997 20 5 5 10 25
Micky Adams England 5 November 1997 1 July 1998 33 7 15 11 21
Ron Noades England 1 July 1998 20 November 2000 130 51 33 46 39
Ray Lewington England 20 November 2000 7 May 2001 37 14 11 12 38
Steve Coppell England 8 May 2001 5 June 2002 54 27 12 15 50
Wally Downes England 28 June 2002 14 March 2004 97 29 22 46 30
Garry Thompson[7] England 14 March 2004 18 March 2004 1 0 1 0 0
Martin Allen England 18 March 2004 30 May 2006 124 54 36 34 44
Leroy Rosenior Sierra Leone 14 June 2006 18 November 2006 23 3 10 10 13
Scott Fitzgerald[8] Republic of Ireland 18 November 2006 9 April 2007 24 4 5 15 17
Barry Quin[7] England 9 April 2007 7 May 2007 4 1 0 3 25
Terry Butcher England 7 May 2007 11 December 2007 23 5 5 13 22
Andy Scott[8] England 11 December 2007 Present 130 52 43 35 40
See also:Category:Brentford F.C. managers - a list of all Brentford F.C. managers with a Wikipedia article.

Players with most appearances

as at 8 May 2010

Name Appearances in League and Cup Career at Brentford
England Ken Coote 559 (514 lge 35 FAC 10 LC) 1949–1964
England Jamie Bates 524 (419 lge 21 FAC 40 LC 44 Other) 1986–1999
England Peter Gelson 516 (471 lge 28 FAC 17 LC) 1960–1975
Scotland Tommy Higginson 433 (388 lge 27 FAC 18 LC) 1959–1970
Scotland Jackie Graham 409 (374 lge 21 FAC 14 LC) 1970–1980
Republic of Ireland Kevin O'Connor 401 (344 lge 27 FAC 11 LC 19 other) 2000–Present
England Keith Millen 379 (305 lge 18 FAC 26 LC 30 other) 1984–1992
England Gerry Cakebread 374 (348 lge 20 FAC 6 LC) 1955–1964
England Danis Salman 371 (325 lge 17 FAC 19 LC 10 other) 1975–1986
England Alan Nelmes 350 (316 lge 19 FAC 15 LC) 1967–1976

Highest goalscorers

as at 1 October 2009

Name Goal Scorers in League and Cup Career at Brentford
England Jim Towers 163 (153 lge 9 FAC 1 LC) 1951–1961
England George Francis 136 (124 lge 12 FAC) 1953–1962
England Jack Holliday 122 (119 lge 3 FAC) 1932–1939
England Gary Blissett 105 (79 lge 7 FAC 9 LC 10 other) 1987–1993
Scotland Dave McCulloch 90 (85 lge 5 FAC) 1935–1938
England Bill Lane 89 (79 lge 10 FAC) 1929–1932
England Billy Scott 88 (83 lge 3 FAC) 1932–1947
Ghana Lloyd Owusu 87 (76 lge 4 FAC 3 LC 4 other) 1998-2002 & 2005-2007
England Jack Lane 86 (74 lge 12 FAC) 1925–1931
Wales Idris Hopkins 80 (77 lge 3 FAC) 1932–1947

Capped international players

The following players earned international caps whilst playing for Brentford (number of caps awarded whilst at Brentford FC in brackets, if known and confirmed):

Full International

U-21 International

Youth International

Schoolboy International

England

Amateur Internationals to have played whilst at Brentford FC are:

Martin Woosnam, Kevin O'Flanagan, Jackie Burns, Alec Barclay, Vivian Gibbins, T.H. Robinson, Maurice Edelston, A.H. Gibbons, Bill Slater.

Victory International (Matches Played Soon After WWI)

England

War Time International (Matches Played from 1939–1945)

Honours

  • FA Cup
    • Best performance: Sixth Round/Quarter-Final - 1937/1938, 1945/1946, 1948/1949, 1988/1989

Rivalry

Main article: West London derby

Brentford’s main rivals are Fulham and Queens Park Rangers.

In recent years, Brentford's main rivals have been Queens Park Rangers. The two clubs competed regularly up until the 1965/1966 season, when Brentford were relegated from the Third Division. It was not until the 2001/2002 season that the two clubs competed again. The rivalry intensified in 1967, when Queens Park Rangers failed in a controversial attempt to buy Brentford and amalgamate the two clubs together. The last competative match between the two clubs took place at Griffin Park on 14 February 2004; Brentford 1-1 Queens Park Rangers (in what is now League 1).

Brentford also have a long standing rivalry with Fulham. The two clubs competed regularly up until Fulham were bought by Egyptian millionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed during the summer of 1997. The last competative match between the two clubs took place at Griffin Park on 11 April 1998; Brentford 0-2 Fulham (in what is now League 1).

Mascot

Brentford's mascot is named Buzz Bee.

Club songs

Brentford's club song is Hey Jude by The Beatles. This is played at every home game and sung by the Brentford supporters throughout the game. In 1993 the band One Touch To Go recorded the song Red On White for the team. The track can be found on the album Greatest Hiss 1983/1999. The song has been played at the ground till at least 2002. In 2001 Status Quo bassist John 'Rhino' Edwards recorded a track called Brentford's Big Day Out after the Bees reached the final of the LDV Trophy at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. More recently Lloyd Owusu, on his short comeback to Brentford recorded a track about himself and his connections with the club. Surprisingly, this spent a short while being downloaded rapidly off music websites. The track's main word is Owusu as during his time at the club Lloyd was a fan favourite and whenever his name was read out the fans shouted back his surname as well as raised their hands. This referred to how he liked to 'raise the roof'.

Celebrity connections

Celebrity supporters include:

Actor and comedian, Bradley Walsh was a professional at the club in the late 1970s but never made the first team squad.

Late Jazz Band Leader, Billy Cotton, who hosted the long-running Billy Cotton's Band Show on Radio and TV, played for Brentford as an amateur in his youth.

Singer/pop icon Rod Stewart is often reported to be a former player, but this is believed to be a myth. Stewart admitted to not have been signed by Brentford in a 1995 issue of Q Magazine, but possibly had trials in 1961 and left before being offered any 'deal' to stay on.

Club records

See also

References

  1. ^ "Allen resigns from Bees". skysports.com. 2006-06-30. Retrieved 2006-11-18.
  2. ^ "Rosenior sacked as Brentford boss". BBC Sport. 2006-11-18. Retrieved 2006-11-19.
  3. ^ "Boss Fitzgerald leaves Brentford". BBC Sport. 2007-04-10. Retrieved 2007-04-10.
  4. ^ "Boss Butcher leaves Brentford job". BBC Sport. 2007-12-11. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
  5. ^ "Brentford given new stadium boost". BBC Sport. 7 December 2007. Retrieved 13 December 2007.
  6. ^ "Brentford Football Club and Barratt Homes team up to acquire land for new Community Stadium". Brentford FC. 22 February 2008. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
  7. ^ a b Served as caretaker manager.
  8. ^ a b Initially as caretaker manager.
  9. ^ "Hollywood Supporter". The Observer. 2002-04-07. Retrieved 2010-05-27.
  10. ^ "Sarah Cracknell interview from Boyz magazine". Boyz Magazine. 1998-04-04. Retrieved 2010-04-27.
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