Spread the love

Hindsight can be a wonderful thing.

I, like many others, will never be able to forget the gut-crushing despair I felt on 27th April 2013 when Marcello Trotta stepped up to miss his over-documented penalty against Doncaster Rovers.

Subsequent defeat at Wembley to Yeovil was like water off a duck’s back. My heart had already been broken.

The following crowing from Fulham supporters about their “Secret Agent” was a further bitter pill to take.  Fortunately a quick look at the league table today, and Jota’s late winner at Griffin Park in November, have silenced that nagging pain.

In fact, as the sands of time pass ever onwards, I’m starting to believe that Marcello Trotta did Brentford FC a massive favour.

I’m not a massive subscriber to the theory that it’s unhealthy for clubs to get promoted when they are “not ready” – I’d love us to be playing in the Premiership next season.  In these heady commercial footballing days players and managers come and go on a regular basis, and I’m sure that we would nip and tuck our existing squad where necessary to try and find a way to compete.

But in 2013 fate dealt us a hand that forced us to consolidate. To build again. And I’d argue that we are all the better for it.

Whilst we’ve had a change of gaffer during this period, with Uwe Rosler jumping to the capsizing ship at Wigan, Mark Warburton was already part of the management team. Part of Matthew Benham’s philosophy. We couldn’t have made a better appointment with Warbs building on what we already had, turning up the throttle as we nosed our way out of League One.

As I write, Brentford FC sit 5th in the Championship. We’ve battered a few teams and been taught the odd lesson along the way. But it’s been very rare that we’ve been comprehensively outplayed and I don’ t think we’ve got anything to be scared of if we keep to our current footballing gameplan. Why can’t we push for promotion again?

We’ve added some real talent to the squad over the past year – from the raw genius of  Andre Gray and the jawdropping skills of Jota to the deliciously controlled power and pace of Moses Odubajo. Alan Judge, amongst others, has been a revelation in this division.  And we’ve now got Lewis Macleod, the young darling of Rangers, waiting in the wings.

But for me the true highlight has been seeing a number of the team of 2013 adapt to life a division up. Toumani, Dougie, Bidwell, Dean and Saunders all played their part that day but they’ve been playing their part in the Championship too. And they’ve achieved this through both their own application and  the stability at the club for the past two seasons.

Doncaster Rovers now sit mid-table in League One. They’ve got aspirations to come back up this year but it’s fair to say that we’ve not missed our former pin-up boy Harry Forrester who through a mixture of injury and performance failed to make the step up last term.  Yeovil Town, our play-off conquerors at Wembley, are currently bottom of League One with just six victories to their name this season. Bleak times in the West Country.

Back in West London the future looks bright. We’ve a new ground on the horizon and a growing crowd to help fill it. Our football has been a pleasure to watch – crisp passing, team-wide endeavour and a belief that we belong at this level or above. Long may it continue.

There are sure to be further twists and tribulations, highs and lows, before this season is out. Hopefully more highs than lows. But I’m a very content and proud Brentford supporter right now.

So thank you Marcello, you helped us get there in the end.

Condorman