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Now the dust has settled on Brentford’s Chelsea adventure, and two exciting new signings have been added to the squad as Uwe concentrates on a promotion push, Mark Croxford’s gaze (along with all Bees’ I suspect) focusses on this weekend’s visit by Walsall. A late Clayton Donaldson header, shortly after a Jonathan Douglas lob, saw the Bees fight back from two down at the Bescot earlier this season, but I’m hoping for a repeat of the 1980 score-line if I’m honest! The YouTube clip here also shows another classic clash with Walsall, a day when a certain Terry Hurlock made his Bees debut!

Goals Galore – At Last! Brentford 4, Walsall 0

December 1980 came to a close with Brentford earning a creditable 0-0 draw against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane but few would have anticipated the goal-drought which was about to follow. The next three games also finished as 0-0 draws – against Burnley (H), Chester (A) and Huddersfield (H). The ‘clean sheets’ were welcome but the failure to manage a single goal was all the more worrying as just 10 days before the Sheffield game, Fred Callaghan had invested a reported £30,000 in a brand-new strike-force, namely Gary Johnson and Lee Frost from Chelsea.

The run of goal-less draws was brought to end with the visit of Walsall to Griffin Park on Saturday 24th January 1981 and just as the blank score-sheets had been unexpected, the outcome of The Saddlers visit was also a surprise as Johnson and Frost finally proved their worth in a thumping 4-0 win.

It was Brentford’s biggest victory of the season, their biggest win under Callaghan’s management and also clinched the first ‘double’ of the season, having won 3-2 at the Bescot Stadium back in August.

Having stormed into a three-goal lead inside the opening 25 minutes, the Bees dismissed Walsall with clinical efficiency and the score-line could easily have been almost doubled as both Frost and Gary Roberts lobbed balls against the crossbar and Frost found the side-netting when put clear by Johnson.

The Middlesex Chronicle reporter was clearly impressed,

… “So predictable was this goal riot that I would have eaten my notebook had Brentford failed to find the net again (after the opening goal). Continuing with this metaphoric gastronomy, I will now eat humble pie regarding the abilities of Messrs Frost and Johnson and their manager’s faith thereof. The former Chelsea pair combined beautifully and Johnson, in particular, looked sharp and deadly in the area.”

GOAL 1 came after only 7 minutes, with Lee Frost meeting David Crown’s cross at the near post to tuck the ball past Ron Green after a fine dummy by Johnson (this was, incidentally, the first goal to be scored by a Brentford striker at Griffin Park since November 1st).

GOAL 2 (in the 11th minute) was a marvellous piece of opportunism by Johnson, who picked up Terry Hurlock’s astute pass before rifling an unstoppable right-footed drive wide of Green from 15 yards.

GOAL 3 came after 25 minutes and was scored by Paul Shrubb – his first for almost a year. The creator this time was Pat Kruse who chipped delicately into the box for Shrubb to run between defender and goalkeeper and lob the ball into the net from six yards. If Frost and Johnson were ecstatic having found their goal-scoring touch, Shrubb was nothing short of delirious as he embarked on a lap of honour. As Ron Harris quipped afterwards, “Shrubby was off round the pitch before he even got to the ball!”

GOAL 4 (73 minutes) had a real touch of class as Johnson expertly drilled home a loose ball after Harris had knocked the ball over the Walsall defence.

The return to goal-scoring delighted Fred Callaghan who acknowledged after the game that the drought had been weighing heavy on his new strikers, ”I’m especially pleased for Lee and Gary who have been really worried about not scoring. They are both capable of getting goal but, not unnaturally, have been a little tense.”

The result, the performance and the goal-glut left everyone looking forward to the next fixture, a week later – a trip to Reading.

Oh … and it ended 0-0!!

Mark Croxford