7(seven) games in and Brentford remain locked on three points, sit second bottom in the Championship table and have still failed to record a league win. Our latest attempt saw a 2-1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday where despite taking an early lead via Nico Yennaris, normal 2017/18 service soon resumed. The only consolation of the night was another blank and another defeat for a Birmingham City side who now join us in the bottom three.
But first, matters closer to home. Another game, another defeat for Dean Smith and his new look Bees. A trip to Sheffield Wednesday was never going to be an easy one but we were given a gift wrapped start after Nico gave us a 9th minute lead from outside the box. It was less a piledriver and more a bobbling grass cutter but, somehow, Owls ‘keeper Kieren Westwood conspired to let it squirm under his body.
And if you’d like to read more whilst helping the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust …. the rest of this article can now be found in the Kindle e-book Ten Times Better. Brentford FC Season review: 2017/18. Inspired by ‘that’ interview it contains the least bad of these columns in one, handy volume as it looks at our own campaign as well as wider divisional life and the promotion / relegation races.
As a bonus there’s a whole host of new material. New that is, for my pages. Specifically, all the programme articles submitted (both home and away where, if nothing else, you can get the original versions of both Birmingham City and Millwall).
In addition, There Is No Plan B. Brentford FC Season reviews: 2013/14 – 2017/18 takes us all the way back to the start of this latest leg in the journey. That penalty. League One. Harlee Dean was a hero. Jota was something we thought happened to the temperature for one week in July. Alan Judge had joined on loan whilst the Marinus Experiment was something nobody had contemplated. Bringing things bang up to date by the inclusion of this year’s volume alongside the four previously published campaign round ups, it has five seasons in one weighty tome. As weighty as a download can be, that is.
Relive the memories. See how often the same material gets regurgitated. Remind yourself about the likes of Betinho, Martin Fillo, Javi Venta and Marcos Tebar. Certainly, if there’s no Marcos Tea Bar at Lionel Road it will be an opportunity missed.
All proceeds from any sales will go to the Community Sports Trust. For less than the cost of a half / pint respectively, they may help while away some time on the commute. By the pool on holiday. In the bathroom. Who knows? It will certainly do some good for the Trust, whose work has been well documented at Griffin Park but you can read all about it on their site.
And if that wasn’t enough, I’ve been given something very special. A 2017/18 third team shirt with Lewis Macleod’s squad number on the reverse in the EFL typeface. Anyone with half an interest in Bees kits will know that these were never made available in the club shop. Anyone who has read any of this before will know what a kit nerd yours truly is so when I say this is rare, take that in good faith!
To be in with a chance of owning it, download a copy of either before the end of June 2018 and you’ll go into a draw to win this. Just DM/tweet me (@NickBruzon) a copy of your purchase confirmation mail and I’ll add your name to the list before selecting a random Bees fan to win this on July 1st.
Dean v Marinus. If we are looking at stats
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Nick Bruzon
BrentfordFC 
As you point out we make it too easy for the opposition to score against us with silly mistakes. Yes we aren’t getting the rub of the green but it can’t all be down to that? Accept the gifts that very occasionally come our way like last night, cut out the mistakes and we go on to win. Thats how Boro got promoted a couple of seasons ago. Wheres Vibe? Is he injured? I havent heard anything about him for a while now.
And whilst we talk about our performances merit us being top half, the plentiful gifts we give others mean we are where we are. I dont want to hear anybody say we are too good to go down….if you’re going to concede poor goals all the time then heaven forbid it could happen. Still, I’m not a total doom mongerer…just anxious to get that first and 2nd win under our belts
Agreed Rob. Six points from these two games and there’ll be a totally different complexion / vibe. Here’s to more gifts – receiving; not giving
I don’t understand your comment about Clayton. He plays for Sheffield United, Birmingham sold him on the last day of the window.
Agreed. But they aren’t scoring at present whilst he grabbed a pair on his debut for Sheff U. No doubt it’ll all swing about at some point but I’ll enjoy anything about their transfer business whilst I can.
Sorry can’t agree with what you are saying Nick (unusually I must admit). I don’t live in UK so I don’t get to many matches but was at both the Villa and Wednesday games. We played well, created chances, and should definitely have beaten Villa and could have beaten Wednesday. It is hard for me to judge earlier performances but from what I read we were unlucky in some of those.
Their first goal did have an element of luck but the mistake was made out on the wing on the halfway line not in the penalty area and credit has to be given to Wednesday for creating the chance so quickly from that position….and yet with a little luck it might not have been a goal. Wednesday are a good side and will create chances, we matched them for the whole match except we couldn’t convert the chances. I think it will come but we have to be patient if that is possible in our current position. Watkins was very good against Villa but was bundled off the ball too easily by physical Wednesday challenges last night. Maupay misses chances but works his socks off all across the back line and they just have to work out the right ball for him and he will start scoring. To me Egan and Barbet are beginning to look good alongside each other. I have seen comments questioning Dalsgaard defensive qualities but have to say he looked good in both the last two away games – in defence as well as in attack.
Like you Nick I am rather tired of hearing how unlucky we were in defeat or in drawing but in the two matches I have seen we were unlucky. Johnstone saved Villa from defeat and the width of the post stopped Maupay from getting us the draw last night.
I have been to some bad games in my time but have to say I enjoyed both games this visit and feel Brentford did play very well in both. Sometimes you win matches you don’t deserve to, it would be nice if a few of those could happen before the 10 games are up.
Thanks Kevin. No need to apologise – I welcome all opinion and, frankly, if everybody agreed with me it would be pretty dull around here 🙂 . I still think there are tons of positives and tons of potential – oh to see it all kick in together and us have a belated start to the season. One thing Dean does is ‘blips’. He’s had two so far and now seems well into a third. How he extricates himself once more is going to be very interesting.
That said,I’ve no doubt he’ll do it and this’ll be nothing more than stats at the end of the season
We need Lasse back. An update from the club on his foot injury would be helpful for all us. In his absence currently and with Neal misfiring give Justin his chance?
Wow. This is a tough one. I’ve often been critical of Dean Smith on here but I do genuinely feel sorry for him. Players leaving. New players getting up to speed. Loads of bad luck. The list goes on.
Despite all of the above, I do think there has to come a point where MB / PG / RA have to sit down and say that, for whatever reason, things aren’t working and a change is required. I find it fascinating that Marinus only got 8 league games (8 points from 24) before getting the chop. Currently, Smith has had 7 league games this season and garnered 3 points from 21. However you look at it, that’s bad.
Let’s see what happens in the next three. All winnable in my opinion. Just feels like he’s a nice chap and he wants to play good football, but maybe we need a change of direction now. Perhaps a bit more direct with a bit more bite about us. We’re playing nice football, we’ve been hugely unlucky, we’ve lost key players, but maybe we now need something, and someone, different.