Bees journalist Jim Levack shares his thoughts on today’s much awaited statement over the short-term future of Mark Warburton and the long-term future of our football club.
Stuck in a work meeting I could feel my phone repeatedly buzzing… the long awaited statement must be out. At its conclusion I legged it back to my desk to read through the denouement of days of speculation which might finally calm the Team Benham and Team Warbs camps.
If truth be told there wasn’t much in the statement I hadn’t expected. After all Matthew Benham holds all the cards so barring a dramatic reverse ferret he would get his way.
A scour of the message boards and ‘In Matthew we trust’ seemed to be the heart on sleeve reaction of many of the Brentford faithful.
Others were hugely appreciative of the manager, whose football ethos has played a significant part in putting us in the position we are now in.
As a partnership they were dynamite – we thought it would never end as ‘tinpot’ Brentford rolled over the so-called big guns with flair, panache, guile and character.
Sadly the latter two of those qualities are built around a dressing room unity that may now be hard to salvage with Warburton on his way in May.
Good managers aren’t easy to find and Warburton was arguably one of the best we’ve seen at Griffin Park. Players don’t play for bad managers – though supremely professional they are human, and may be feeling this as a betrayal of all they’ve achieved.
The play offs now look a big ask, but if I’m brutally honest that doesn’t worry me as much as the mid to long term direction of MY football club… and it is mine regardless of Matthew’s investment. I hope he understands that.
I understand he is ruthlessly ambitious and is determined to take us to the Premier League. I’m also delighted that he wants to do so with a sustainable model based on innovation rather than willy nilly spending. There is no long term sense in that.
But I do have a worry that the statement doesn’t address.
Several weeks ago before all this blew up I was honoured to have been asked to take part in a survey of ‘Brentford people’ about the marketing, branding and future of the club.
I was on the phone for about an hour with the marketing guy and at the end I asked him who he supported. “I’m a little ashamed to say I’m a Man Utd fan,” he admitted: “But listening to all you Brentford fans has made me really jealous of what you’ve got”.
I’d told him about the brilliant work the club does in the community, mentioned the fact that local pensioners had been invited in for a meal, that there is truly something special about the club and its fans. It’s like a family where we all have the same values of loyalty and dedication.
That, I told him, was almost as important to me as the weekly football fayre.
So although I have no doubt that Matthew is as devoted as the next Brentford fan, I find his single-minded vision just a little scary. Maybe that’s just me and the fact that ‘little Brentford’ is now indelibly etched in my DNA.
I’m sure Matthew would accuse me of being an unambitious fool blissfully content to see Brentford never change and drift around outside the top flight, and if I’m totally honest I‘m guilty as charged if it means the character of the club changing irrevocably.
Comparisons with previous owners of ill repute are absolutely ludicrous and frankly defamatory. To my mind Matthew is either an impatient rich supporter or a visionary genius, albeit one who occasionally needs to seek diplomatic counsel.
Only history will tell whether the sacrifice of a very special manager – who will be snapped up – is a wise move, but regardless of whether we are at Morecambe or Chelsea in a few years time, I know I don’t want the values of my club to be chucked out with the bathwater.
My son is threatening not to renew his season ticket for next season. I will talk to him and calm him down and he’ll relent because the Bees are in our blood as much as they are in Matthew’s and his boy’s.
The question I’d love him to answer as we move forward, hopefully united behind Warburton, is how much does he care about the foundations of the club and what it stands for?
If the answer is not a lot and it’s all about making the big time, then that’s fine. I just think this particular blinkered fan needs to know.
Perhaps I’m unnecessarily scared of turning to the next chapter and certainly my dear old dad wouldn’t have believed any of this, but I would love just a little reassurance that Matthew’s millions will not mean the end of everything good that our club truly stands for.
Jim Levack
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This week has sent mild mannered and sane thinking people absolutely delusional. On the Sunday after the Leeds game, the majority of fans had us in the ‘we can push for the the 2 promotion places here’ camp, followed then by the headline and story that will pretty much become the story and define the season now. To then, once the story broke, a total disbelief that Benham could even consider getting rid or ‘sacking’ the man we all held up on a pedestal as being responsible, almost solely, for where we were, to now, after reading the above article, questioning whether Benham is going to keep the community club feel if we are to break into the big time.
It’s all absolutely crazy!!
Surely as fans who were craving the holy land, the messiah, the promised land, of the all singing, all dancing, Premiership must, absolutely must, realise that if Brentford, tin pot Brentford, were to get there, there would be forced on us wholesale changes. It’s part of the territory. I wrote a reply only days ago which said I was in the camp, and not alone, in not being slightly bothered by the loss at Charlton, because I don’t really want to go up. Not yet, not til were ready and that’s in stadium, in preparation, off the field, press, ticketing, professionalism but most importantly, til us as supporters have got used to the idea. Yes, a carrot has been dangled in front of us by the ridiculously great football we’ve played this year, turning over team after team, week in week out and boy have we enjoyed it, ever single, mouth watering minute of it but hold our horses. Wait just a second, we want it all and we want it now. Why, because Sky hammer it down our throats, week in week out how great this promised land is of “Super Sundays” and the great adverts and build up to games such as West Brom v Southampton and Everton v Stoke or some other such, couldn’t give 2 hoots about game that I would only consider a Super Sunday if I didn’t get to see any of them at all. Even when games such as Man Utd v Chelsea, or Man City v Arsenal were the featured games, I’d still have swapped them for a day out to Yeovil or Bournemouth to watch the Bees lose 3-0 and have my little moan and whinge and then head back but still having enjoyed it in a sycophantic way. But after reading all the above, I can’t quite grasp whether we want all the success and glory of seeing our little team of the lower leagues try to compete on the highest level, or whether we want to be the big hitters, the number 1 players in west London, scrap that, all of London, in fact, scrap that, the whole of Europe but it seems we need to make our minds up as fans quickly.
Benham has pumped his hard earned/well placed bets/luckily gambled money (you choose) in to this club and done so without ever wanting the spotlight, never courting the press, never wanting to be interviewed and turning up in his green fur lined hooded Parker, with denim jeans and loafer slip ons on, walking up to the gate shaking nervously anyone’s hand who puts it out to him, although you get the feeling he’d rather just shuffle in and out without any fuss whatsoever, enjoy his game and then return to whence he came but make no mistakes about it, he will continue to walk to the ground, albeit maybe only from the directors car park in Brentford school for girls but maybe just as likely having just jumped off the E2 or 65 bus and his head will be held high I’m sure.
I have no doubt in my mind that there are some misguided (to be polite to them) fans, who will give him there tuppence worth, cos ‘I’m owed that as I pay the clubs wages’ and thereby completing ignoring the multitudes of pounds that Mr Benham has decided to invest in his hobby, giving us a new modern ground in a few years, trips to state of the art training camps in the USA, back room staff to be proud of, a training ground improving all the time, a leading supplier of kit in adidas supplying us, a luxury state of the art facility for youth development in Uxbridge and so so much more but will this man who quietly walks up to matches, enjoys the game and walk away, really want to be doing that when or if he is getting weekly abuse and vile chants at him?? Answer is, I highly doubt that for one minute. He’s in it for the long term, he’s in it as maybe another chance to show how successful a man he is but he has dangled a carrot in front of us fans when 4 or 5 years ago, we had nothing. Nothing of the sort, so let’s give the man a chance, let’s give him his due and let’s give him some time to lead us to where his visionary outlook might do and then and only if then, when we are where we all wanted to be a day after the Leeds result, might we say to him, “but Matthew, you don’t give the Pensioners that live near the ground a free roast Turkey dinner anymore” at him or “how come you, the manager and the players don’t come down The Globe for a pint after the game anymore” like you used to when we were a family club?? Well the answer will be, they’ll be doing interviews and tv programmes and promotions for the ever demanding God of all football, Sky, so be careful what we wish for but let’s not level that at the only man that I know, who is a true fan of the club, who has that amount of money to set aside to put in to his hobby and give the rest of us all a much better chance of enjoying our hobby of going to watch small little old tin pot Brentford week in week out.
Well said Stephen.
Great response and I agree with some of what you say… but there is such a thing as blind faith and I haven’t got it yet. As you say, give me time and I might get used to the idea. You’re basically saying you can’t have one without the other and I’m asking ‘why not?’. You have to agree it’s a talking point and an issue worth flagging… before it’s too late.
Totally agree Jim but this week has been ludicrous. People have genuinely lost their minds. 7 days, less than 7 days in fact, we were going to the Premiership after 28 years worth of lower league football and now Matthew Benham has made a call, rightly or wrongly, which has yet to be decided granted, but he’s made a call that certain things needed improving, needed tweaking to give us an even better chance of doing it and everyone lost their heads.
Let’s just say he was totally honest and said “I approached Mark Warburton and David Weir about getting in a couple of central defenders to replace Dean and Craig and also maybe some competition for Bidwell at left back to up his game or compete for a place” or “I also mentioned getting in a 25-30 goal a year guy to bring in alongside Gray or to give Gray some respite and maybe another couple of new faces in, one a strong Premiership savvy holding midfielder and a creative European midfield/forward in” but Mark and David weren’t interested in it and as opposed to giving it a real go given our great position, I really wanted to give it all we had and a final push to get to the Premiership. Well you’re telling me that the majority of us who have watched this season unfold, wouldn’t have said, he’s got a point there, we could have made improvements and gone for it but that’s not his style.
We all know the team we idolise now, is not and will not be the ones that either get us promoted or be playing in the Premiership side if we got there but no fans would stop supporting Brentford week in week out and go and watch Harlee Dean playing at Colchester soon or Craig turning out for Wycombe Wanderers in a few years time because deep down we know, they aren’t up to where Benham is leading us and what if Warburtons loyalty in wanting to keep them, was a deciding factor. Who’s right then?? I’m going all in on Benham at that point!
I agree 100% with what MB has done and what Stephen says above.
Most fans could see we were light a forward, a cb and competition for Jake if we wanted to go up this season.
Surely MW and the Football Dept’s job is to assimilate new signings when needed in order to win games and promotion, not just pander to the group and the feelings of existing squad members? IMO that’s a real weakness which may inhibit MW from ever hitting the heights as a manager and I think we may find that without the set up MB has created at BFC behind him he may well just do a Uwe and fizzle out.
The only criticism I can make is the way in which this has been handled. This shouldn’t have been allowed to drag on for so long and whilst MB may have no interest in what the media thinks he’d be wise to carry the fans with him. Otherwise he risks alienating some of us as he transforms the club.
I’m with Benham too. Just not at any cost.
Too true, the comments about Harlee and Craig, but it is difficult for somebody raised on the skills of Dick Renwick and the curious incident of the dog and Chic Brodie at Lincoln to gather their thoughts in regard to the speed of it all, after all it ain’t the Emirates !
Terrific perspective Jim, thank you. It’s that old conundrum of how much change, how quickly, without losing the essence of the ‘old’ Brentford. Stephen asks the $64,000 question: if, like you and me, you genuinely thought back in the autumn that Tarky is the only really decent centre back we have, and that we needed a replacement for Hogan and cover for Jake, yet Warbs and team wouldn’t go for it (or the aforementioned specialist coaches), what the hell else can MB do? With the benefit of hindsight and some cooling off, the one aspect of all of this that really surprises me is that Warbs couldn’t/wouldn’t relish the opportunity to do more in the transfer window. I imagine we’ll hear more on that over time, but it strikes me as a huge opportunity missed by him, regardless of how the Director of Football/structural discussions panned out.
Now we have the ‘official’ statement and reasoning behind the ‘letting go’ of MW and his team,there still remains,for me, one mystery. MB does not seem like a man who suddenly changes his mind. So surely he had his ‘long term vision’ for the club when he appointed MW as manager and that he was made aware of the direction in which he wanted the club to move. Presumably MW was in agreement with this and shared the vision,otherwise why give him the job? I do not believe that MW has radically changed his philosophy either,so the only thing I can come up with,is that MW’s appointment was always going to be short-term until the team who totally complement MB’s vision became available. I can only hope that a system that has consistently failed in English football will succeed at Brentford. I’m not sure if I believe that it will,but then I never thought I would witness the wonderful football played under MW. Here’ s to the future,whatever it may hold.
Some very sensible debate on here. Of course the point about needing to improve in every position continually is very valid. There is an equally valid counter-argument that a plethora of new players could have upset the whole squad overall – not just those being replaced – which may have had a negative effect on team morale and performance. But we will never know I guess. Why the f*ck we said no to a forward baffles me though.
I will be very interested to see how we perform against Bournemouth. And Blackpool. I’ve paid for a season ticket so don’t now want to just watch people milling around feeling undervalued whilst Callum Wilson waltzes around them and smashes the ball into the top corner.
There IS a role for a good MAN MANAGER in Benham’s masterplan. It’s a team game after all. It’s a shame that Warbs isnt a part of it because he has certainly improved some of our misfiring players.
Such a thrilling ride last year and to date this season, hence very difficult for the average man/woman on the Clapham Omnibus to understand why Matthew Benham feels it necessary to push the driver and his navigator out of the side door while we are still flying along. Which ever way you cut this particular cake, MW and DW have been kicked in the teeth and will be a massive loss. To the typical Bees fan and the wider football “village” (to quote a recent daft expression), the events of the last few days appear bizarre in the extreme. However long Benham has been a fan and however many millions he has put into the club, this ‘I’m the owner, I’m in charge, I’ll do it my way’ approach makes me distinctly uncomfortable and perhaps it would have been better to leave a couple of stones unturned in the quest for sustainable Premier League Football until such time as the manager and the team’s performance justified the owner’s ‘innovative’ interventions.
Why did this have to happen now when we were almost there ?I have supported the Bees all my life , they were relegated from the old Division 1 the season I was born so I have waited a long time to see them get back and I really thought this would be the year .
Over the years there have been many highs and lows the worst being when Jack Dunnett tried to sell the club to OPR in 1967 and right now I feel much the same as I did then .
I now live in Brighton and so take an interest in the local team and can see some similarities as to what is happening .
Promotion to the Championship , a new stadium , a top manager and then the Chairman gets carried away with his own importance .
The wheels have well and truly come off at Brighton and I can see the same thing happening at Brentford , like Brighton this season I fear next season the Bees will be in a relegation battle in the Championship with a manager who will be out of his depth .
Why did this have to happen now when we were almost there ?
Up the Bees ……….