Brentford Football Club today celebrates a fantastic landmark in its history, as our proud old club reaches the ripe age of 125 years old. Happy Birthday Brentford!
As one of the authors of the forthcoming Official 125 Year book I, along with Mark Croxford, have spend the past year unearthing some wonderful stories from throughout the club’s history, but undoubtedly, the most pleasure has been provided by the early years material, even though the book is bang-up-to-date and covers events up to and including our promotion to the Championship last season.
The writing styles, phraseology and descriptiveness of those ‘hazy days in the long ago’ vividly capture some of the proudest moments for the County town’s football club, as well as the late Victorian way of life they portray.
Terms such as Brentonians and the Gas Men show how the town of Brentford has evolved, not just its football club, and we are so proud of being able to reproduce the evocative reports and poems that tell the tale of The B’s Cup win over Westminster Ponsonby in 1892, and the celebrations throughout the town that followed. We also re-live Brentford’s first rise through the divisions under the guidance of the great Bees manager, Harry Curtis, in stunning detail with many newly discovered photographs and reports.
In the space of ten years the stature of the club, and of Griffin Park as a stadium, metamorphosed from Southern League caterpillars into stunning red and white butterflies able to compete with, and beat, the best clubs in the world, in front of huge crowds.
And today, as we all raise our glasses and say ‘Happy Birthday You Bees’, I honestly feel that we are now witnessing the second renaissance of Brentford Football Club, right here, right now, under the guidance of Mathew Benham and Mark Warburton.
Here’s to the next 125 Years… whatever they may bring.
Dave Lane
The book will be available through the club’s official shops both online and at Griffin Park from mid November.
If you get a chance, please vote for Beesotted to be shortlisted in the Football Blogging Awards for Best Video Blog and Best Club Blog by clicking below …
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
CastBox
Acast
TuneIn
Google Podcasts
