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Brentford got back to winning ways in what could be Lee Carsley’s last game in charge of Brentford thanks to a rousing finale capped by a last gasp Hoffman goal that send Griffin Park wild.

The game really came to life in the second period after the two passing teams had canceled themselves in the first half – both sides contributing to an entertaining end to end match.

From a Brentford perspective, it was the injection of Sergi Canos that proved the real turning point. The Spanish whirlwind adding an extra dimension to our play really worrying the Forest defence. The introduction of Philip Hoffman for Lasse Vibe also had the desired effect.

The Bees’ opener came on 63 minutes when Alan McCormack’s corner wasn’t properly cleared. The second phase ball into the box was headed down for Canos to smash home.

But the game was turned on its head  less than ten minutes later when Harlee Dean was shown a straight red.

Dean made a bit of a lunge after a heavy touch, but appeared to win the ball. However, the Bees defender reacted to the award of a free kick by grabbing the ball, then was dismissed for ‘striking’ an opponent. Replays and the reaction of fans with a birds eye view of events suggest that the Forest player had an embarrassing dramatic moment.

That over-reaction seemed to be endemic – spreading through the whole Forest team over the afternoon .

Henry Lansbury equalised a few minutes later, producing a quality finish after Toumani’s poor control (the only black mark in an otherwise fantastic performance) and for the following 20 mins or so, it seemed that Forest would go on an clinch a win with David Button pulled off a couple of top notch saves as the visitors went close.

It has to be said that the 6 minutes injury time awarded for the Forest players’ time-wasting ultimately facilitated a winner (as several fans agreed with in the post match Pride of West London Podcast above). When the fourth official had held his number 6 aloft I thought to myself “Will we win it or lose it?” A draw seemed unlikely with both teams going for it.

Thankfully, the pendulum swung Brentford’s way with Hoffman’s big boot providing the magical ‘slow motion’ moment with the ball pinging off a number of players before evading the grappling De Vries in the Forest goal bringing the roof off Griffin Park and sending Bees fans home beaming.

Dave Lane