Ian Westbrook looks forward to welcoming some old favourites back to Griffin Park in the last home game of what has been a momentous year
INTRODUCTION
What a day in prospect on Boxing Day when Brentford entertain Ipswich Town to reach the halfway point in our first season at this level for more than 20 years.
– The winners can go top of the Championship for at least two hours – or longer if Fulham can pull off a shock win at Dean Court.
– Griffin Park is sold out again – when did that last or in fact ever happen on Boxing Day?
– Jay Tabb and Stephen Hunt return to Griffin Park.
– Ipswich are the visitors for the first time in League action since February 1957.
Bring it on!
IPSWICH OVERVIEW
Ipswich are the longest-serving team in the Championship, having dropped into the second tier from the Premier League in 2002.
During those seasons they have only twice come close to regaining their top flight status when they finished fifth and third in consecutive seasons only to lose in the play-offs.
In fact Ipswich’s play-off record is almost as bad as ours – seven attempts at promotion through the end-of-season lottery and a solitary success in 1999/2000.
Before last season’s ninth place finish they had finished in the bottom half of the table for four years in a row so this season is their first concerted push at promotion for some time.
Their form this season has been based on a formidable home record and plenty of draws on the road.
They have won eight and drawn two of their 11 matches at Portman Road and have only lost two away from home – but have drawn six and won only three of the others.
Town are currently unbeaten in nine matches – their last defeat coming at Cardiff on Tuesday 21 October.
WHO’S THE GAFFER?
Mick McCarthy is one of the most experienced managers in the game.
He has been in charge of Ipswich for just more than two years after replacing Paul Jewell in November 2012.
Previous to that he was at the helm at Wolves for nearly six years and had a similar amount of time as Republic of Ireland manager with three years at Sunderland sandwiched in-between, while his managerial career began at Millwall.
His managerial achievements include leading the Irish to the 2002 World Cup finals and taking them to the second round and leading both Wolves and Sunderland back to the Premier League as champions of the Championship.
As a centre-half, Mick won 57 caps for the Irish while playing his club football with Barnsley, Manchester City, Celtic, Lyon and Millwall.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Brentford and Ipswich have only met four times in the League and three times, featuring four games, in the League Cup.
Boxing Day will be the highest-ranked League encounter between the two sides to date with all the previous matches taking place in Division Three (South) in the mid-1950s.
The Bees’ only win in any of these matches came in the very first meeting at Griffin Park in November 1955 when we triumphed 3-2.
The return match ended 1-1 as did the following season’s home game while we were hammered 4-0 at Portman Road early in the 1956/57 season.
We lost 4-2 at home in the League Cup in 1966/67, 4-0 on aggregate (2-0 in each tie) in 1999/2000 and 2-0 again – this time in Suffolk – five years later.
Brentford line-up for 2004 game: Nelson, Dobson, Myers, Fitzgerald, Hargreaves, Frampton, Rhodes (Rankin 76), O’Connor, Burton, Peters (Tabb 54), Smith (Talbot 54). unused subs: Palmer, Julian.
THE IPSWICH VIEW
Jay Tabb has been a popular interviewee in the build-up to Friday’s game.
He has been interviewed both by Bees fan Nick Bruzon for his Last Word blog and the official Ipswich website about his first return to Griffin Park as a player.
Jay told Nick: “It’s going to be strange lining up for the opposition. I had six fantastic years at Brentford and I loved it as a club.
“I’m looking forward to getting back and seeing a few familiar faces like Peter Gilham and hoping to get a good reception from the fans – it’s been a long while so hopefully they’ll remember me.
“If I get a nice cheer from the crowd it’ll be great and I’ll certainly give them a nice round of applause back.”
Jay told Ipswich’s website: “I have great memories of my time at Brentford.
“They are doing great as well and probably are a surprise package this season.
“They look as though they have a really good set-up there and are going in the right direction. They are in the top six like us and deserve to be.”
Before last weekend’s game against Middlesbrough, the independent Ipswich website TWTD quoted manager Mick McCarthy looking ahead to that game and the visit to Griffin Park.
He said: “The two games are against two of the best teams in the league. I think two of the teams, who are like us and put a shift in.
“I keep saying that and people think ‘Put a shift in?’ like it’s a dirty word. When you don’t put a shift in you get beaten, and that’s been proven and that’s why Brentford and Middlesbrough are up where they are because they’re two tough teams, good teams but tough.”
BEES CONNECTIONS
As already mentioned Jay Tabb and Stephen Hunt return to Griffin Park on Friday while our former loan player Tommy Smith should also be involved.
Midfield duo Tabby and Stephen each played more than 150 games for us in the first part of the last decade – becoming firm crowd favourites.
Centre-half Tommy, who could come up against his namesake at some point during the match, made eight appearances for us during a loan spell in the second half of the 2009/10 season.
ONES TO WATCH
Centre-forward Daryl Murphy is currently enjoying the most prolific season of his career and is the Championship’s top scorer with 14 goals.
It’s only the second time that he has reached double figures in a campaign – the other occasion being when he helped Sunderland win the title in this division in 2006/07.
Former Southampton and Nottingham Forest striker David McGoldrick is second top scorer with six goals while there is experience in the centre of defence in the shape of ex-Hearts and Wolves player Christophe Berra.
Goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski, signed in the summer from Notts County for who he always seemed to play well against us, has become first choice over the past two months.
DID YOU KNOW?
Ipswich have enjoyed 12 seasons of European football – and have the proud record of never losing the home leg of any tie.
They won the UEFA Cup in 1980/81 – beating AZ Alkmaar 4-0 on aggregate in the final.
Ian Westbrook
@ianwestbrook
Pre-match podcast (feat Blair Ferguson from TWTD Ipswich blog)
Pubs in Brentford
For Ipswich fans coming down, you are probably aware there plenty of pub options pre-match with four pubs around the ground plus many many more only slightly further afield.
Being Boxing Day, we cant be sure what time all the pubs will be opening.
However, we have it on good authority that The Globe will be open at 9.30 am for breakfast and beer … The Griffin will be open at 10am for beer (and no doubt a Smiffys burger a few hours later) and The Lord Nelson will be open at 10.30am.
The Griffin (Brook Road South) is closest to the away end and is very popular with away fans – but also gets very busy. The Globe (Windmill Rd .. junction Great West Road) & The Lord Nelson (Enfield Rd) are both incredibly friendly and cozy away-friendly pubs .. frequented by away fans in the know. And are less than 10 mins walk from the ground.
Other than that, you can check out the other of the 4 corner pubs – The New Innon the other side of the ground – also popular with away fans, The Princess Royal and The Royal Oak (normally home fans only).
The Plough (Northfields Ave) in Northfields is a decent stop-off if you are coming by tube to Northfields (which is a much better option than taking the overground from Waterloo/Vauxhall to Brentford main line as tube trains are every 2 or 3 mins as opposed to every ½ hr as they are on he overground) before making your way down to the ground (normally stopping off at The Globe and Lord Nelsonen route).
There is also a pub right by Brentford station always referred to as … the Pub by Brentford station.
All pubs are incredibly away-friendly .. you can wear colours … and none of the Brentford pubs (except possibly the Royal Oak sometimes) do bouncers on the door ..
For ale head to the Magpie and Stump real ale pub on Brentford High Street. The Royal Horseguardsman can probably hold 15 of you at a push. The Brewery Tap is a cosy boozer by the river and there is a new pub just opened by Kew Bridge called One Over the Ait which is another pub with lovely river views. There are loads more too.
There’s a post-match free beer rumour flying around too .. not sure where that came from ….
Parking – start at Windmill Road junction of Clifton Road and work your way up Windmill Rd … any of the roads off Windmill Rd as you head north and over the A4 Great West Road will do .. Many people park in the streets around The Globe and The Lord Nelson.
A quick google search and you’ll find them all. There are many many more too if you have an early start (or all evening)
Not taking anything away but we beat AZ 5-4 over two legs to win the Uefa cup (3-0 home and 2-4 away)