1994–95 season of Brentford F.C.
Brentford 1994–95 football season
During the 1994–95 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Second Division . After a runners-up finish in the league, club's season ended with defeat in the 1995 play-off semi-finals .
Season summary [ ]
Brentford entered the 1994–95 Second Division season with the nucleus of a new squad, built since the breakup of the team which was relegated from the First Division at the end of the 1992–93 season. Forward Nicky Forster was manager David Webb 's only significant summer signing, a £200,000 buy from Third Division Gillingham .[2]
Eight wins and four defeats from the opening 12 games saw the Bees placed 4th in the league, before four defeats in the next five matches dropped the club into mid-table.[3] By early December 1994, first and second round exits from the three cup competitions lightened the fixture load and Brentford set off on a 14-match unbeaten run, winning 10 matches and racking up notable 7–0 and 6–0 victories over Plymouth Argyle and Cambridge United respectively.[3] The victory over Cambridge United in late January 1995 returned the Bees to the top of the table for the first time since the opening day of the season, when five goals were put past Plymouth Argyle at Home Park .[3] Twin strikers Nicky Forster and Robert Taylor were in imperious form, scoring over half the team's goals and forming a partnership that came to be known as the 'FT Index '.[4] The pair saw to it that Brentford finished the 1994–95 season as the only club in the top four divisions with two players scoring 20 league goals or more.[5]
The unbeaten run came to an end with defeat to Shrewsbury Town on 25 February, but another 11-match unbeaten sequence kept Brentford in top spot going into late April.[3] Brentford's good form ran in tandem with that of Birmingham City 's and the Blues topped the table for the first time in eight weeks on 19 April,[6] with the Bees returning to the summit three days later after a 2–0 victory over Cardiff City .[3] Due to a restructuring of the English league system , only top spot in the 1994–95 Second Division offered automatic promotion , which placed heavy emphasis on a "winner takes all" fixture between Birmingham City and Brentford on at St Andrew's on 26 April.[2] A 2–0 defeat for Brentford in front of a 25,581 crowd (the Second Division's record attendance for the season), plus a home defeat to Bournemouth and a draw away with Bristol Rovers in the final two matches, led to a runners-up finish and a place in the play-offs .[2] The Bees met fifth-placed Huddersfield Town in the play-off semi-finals and were knocked out on penalties at Griffin Park after a 2–2 draw on aggregate , with captain Jamie Bates seeing his decisive spot kick saved.
A number of club records were set or equalled during the season:
Fewest Football League goals conceded in a season: 39 (equalled club record)
Most clean sheets kept in a Football League season: 22 (equalled club record)[10]
Most goalscorers in a Football League match: 6 – Darren Annon , Paul Smith , Robert Taylor, Nicky Forster, Denny Mundee and Lee Harvey (versus Plymouth Argyle, 17 December 1994)
League table [ ]
Pos
Team
Pld
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
Pts
Promotion or relegation
1
Birmingham City
46
25
14
7
84
37
+47
89
Division Champions, promoted
2
Brentford
46
25
10
11
81
39
+42
85
Participated in play-offs
3
Crewe Alexandra
46
25
8
13
80
68
+12
83
4
Bristol Rovers
46
22
16
8
70
40
+30
82
5
Huddersfield Town
46
22
15
9
79
49
+30
81
Promoted through play-offs
Results [ ]
Brentford's goal tally listed first.
Legend [ ]
Pre-season and friendlies [ ]
Date
Opponent
Venue
Result
Scorer(s)
18 July 1994
Bournemouth
A
4–1
Mundee (2), Smith , McGhee
20 July 1994
Dulwich Hamlet
A
5–0
Forster (2), Taylor (2), Annon
23 July 1994
Chertsey Town
A
3–2
Harvey , Forster , Mundee
25 July 1994
Hampton
A
7–1
Benjamin (3), Forster , Ashby , Smith , Ratcliffe
27 July 1994
Welling United
A
4–0
Forster , Taylor , Mundee (pen ), Annon
29 July 1994
Portsmouth
H
1–2
Taylor
3 August 1994
Queens Park Rangers
H
0–0
6 August 1994
Kettering Town
A
2–0
Annon , Grainger (pen )
9 August 1994
Bromley
A
2–0
McGhee , Benjamin
29 October 1994
Windsor & Eton
A
7–0
Taylor (5), Asaba , Ansah
8 May 1995
Barnet
A
5–4
Forster (2), Taylor (2), Hurdle
[ ]
No.
Date
Opponent
Venue
Result
Attendance
Scorer(s)
1
13 August 1994
Plymouth Argyle
A
5–1
7,976
Smith , Forster (2), Stephenson , Taylor
2
20 August 1994
Peterborough United
H
0–1
5,561
3
27 August 1994
Stockport County
A
1–0
4,399
Taylor
4
30 August 1994
Rotherham United
H
2–0
4,031
Taylor , Forster
5
3 September 1994
Wrexham
H
0–2
5,820
6
10 September 1994
Wycombe Wanderers
A
3–4
6,847
Taylor , Stephenson , Cousins (og )
7
13 September 1994
York City
A
1–2
2,836
Taylor
8
17 September 1994
Blackpool
H
3–2
4,157
Forster , Smith , Grainger (pen )
9
24 September 1994
Crewe Alexandra
A
2–0
3,839
Forster , Taylor
10
1 October 1994
Shrewsbury Town
H
1–0
4,556
Taylor
11
8 October 1994
Bristol Rovers
H
3–0
5,330
Forster (2), Taylor
12
15 October 1994
Bournemouth
A
1–0
4,411
Forster
13
22 October 1994
Birmingham City
H
1–2
7,779
Ward (og )
14
29 October 1994
Cambridge United
A
0–0
3,102
15
2 November 1994
Bradford City
A
0–1
4,105
16
5 November 1994
Hull City
H
0–1
5,455
17
19 November 1994
Huddersfield Town
A
0–1
10,889
18
26 November 1994
Brighton & Hove Albion
H
2–1
4,728
Ashby , Ansah
19
10 December 1994
Peterborough United
A
2–2
4,102
Taylor , Forster
20
17 December 1994
Plymouth Argyle
H
7–0
4,492
Annon , Smith , Taylor (2), Forster , Mundee , Harvey
21
26 December 1994
Leyton Orient
H
3–0
6,125
Mundee , Ratcliffe , Forster
22
27 December 1994
Chester City
A
4–1
2,261
Forster (3), Grainger
23
31 December 1994
Oxford United
H
2–0
7,125
Forster , Taylor
24
2 January 1995
Cardiff City
A
3–2
5,235
Harvey , Forster , Taylor
25
14 January 1995
Swansea City
H
0–0
7,211
26
21 January 1995
Hull City
A
2–1
3,823
Mundee , Grainger
27
28 January 1995
Cambridge United
H
6–0
6,390
Forster , Taylor (2), Grainger , Bailey (2)
28
4 February 1995
Brighton & Hove Albion
A
1–1
9,499
Bailey
29
11 February 1995
Bradford City
H
4–3
6,019
Mundee , Taylor , Grainger , Forster
30
17 February 1995
Swansea City
A
2–0
3,935
Forster (2)
31
21 February 1995
Huddersfield Town
H
0–0
9,562
32
25 February 1995
Shrewsbury Town
A
1–2
4,570
Forster
33
4 March 1995
Crewe Alexandra
H
2–0
7,143
Mundee , Taylor
34
7 March 1995
Wrexham
A
0–0
2,834
35
11 March 1995
Stockport County
H
1–0
6,513
Taylor
36
18 March 1995
Rotherham United
A
2–0
2,968
Forster , Abrahams
37
21 March 1995
Wycombe Wanderers
H
0–0
9,530
38
25 March 1995
Blackpool
A
2–1
4,663
Bates , Taylor
39
1 April 1995
York City
H
3–0
6,474
Grainger , Forster , Taylor
40
8 April 1995
Oxford United
A
1–1
7,800
Taylor
41
15 April 1995
Chester City
H
1–1
8,020
Abrahams
42
17 April 1995
Leyton Orient
A
2–0
4,459
Bates , Forster
43
22 April 1995
Cardiff City
H
2–0
8,268
Grainger (pen ), Taylor
44
26 April 1995
Birmingham City
A
0–2
25,581
45
29 April 1995
Bournemouth
H
1–2
10,079
Abrahams
46
6 May 1995
Bristol Rovers
A
2–2
8,501
McGhee , Taylor
[ ]
Round
Date
Opponent
Venue
Result
Attendance
Scorer(s)
SF (1st leg)
14 May 1995
Huddersfield Town
A
1–1
14,160
Forster
SF (2nd leg)
17 May 1995
Huddersfield Town
H
1–1 (a.e.t. ), (drew 2–2 on aggregate, lost 4–3 on penalties )
11,161
Grainger (pen )
FA Cup [ ]
League Cup [ ]
Round
Date
Opponent
Venue
Result
Attendance
Scorer(s)
R1 (1st leg)
16 August 1994
Colchester United
A
2–0
2,521
Stephenson , Taylor
R2 (2nd leg)
23 August 1994
Colchester United
H
2–0 (won 4–0 on aggregate)
2,315
Parris , Smith
R2 (1st leg)
20 September 1994
Tranmere Rovers
A
0–1
3,754
R2 (2nd leg)
27 September 1994
Tranmere Rovers
H
0–0 (lost 1–0 on aggregate)
4,076
[ ]
Round
Date
Opponent
Venue
Result
Attendance
Scorer(s)
SR1 (match 1)
19 October 1994
Brighton & Hove Albion
A
1–0
1,104
Forster
SR1 (match 2)
8 November 1994
Gillingham
H
3–1
1,795
Annon , Asaba , Ansah
SR2
3 December 1994
Oxford United
H
1–2
2,410
Grainger (pen )
Source: Statto , The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties
Playing squad [ ]
Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1994–95 season.
No.
Pos.
Name
Nat.
Date of birth (age)
Signed from
Signed in
Notes
Goalkeepers
1
GK
Kevin Dearden
(1970-03-08 ) 8 March 1970 (aged 24)
Tottenham Hotspur
1993
20
GK
Tamer Fernandes
(1974-12-07 ) 7 December 1974 (aged 19)
Youth
1993
25
GK
Neil Mason
(1973-10-29 ) 29 October 1973 (aged 20)
—
—
Assistant physiotherapist
Defenders
2
DF
Brian Statham
(1969-05-21 ) 21 May 1969 (aged 25)
Tottenham Hotspur
1992
3
DF
Martin Grainger
(1972-08-23 ) 23 August 1972 (aged 21)
Colchester United
1993
4
DF
Barry Ashby
(1970-11-21 ) 21 November 1970 (aged 23)
Watford
1994
5
DF
Shane Westley
(1965-06-16 ) 16 June 1965 (aged 29)
Wolverhampton Wanderers
1992
Loaned to Southend United
6
DF
Carl Hutchings
(1974-09-24 ) 24 September 1974 (aged 19)
Youth
1993
12
DF
Jamie Bates (c )
(1968-02-24 ) 24 February 1968 (aged 26)
Youth
1986
19
DF
Gus Hurdle
(1973-10-14 ) 14 October 1973 (aged 20)
Carshalton Athletic
1993
21
DF
Corey Campbell
(1976-03-06 ) 6 March 1976 (aged 18)
Youth
1994
Midfielders
7
MF
Lee Harvey
(1966-12-21 ) 21 December 1966 (aged 27)
Nottingham Forest
1993
8
MF
Paul Smith
(1971-09-18 ) 18 September 1971 (aged 22)
Southend United
1993
10
MF
Darren Annon
(1972-02-17 ) 17 February 1972 (aged 22)
Carshalton Athletic
1994
14
MF
Denny Mundee
(1968-10-10 ) 10 October 1968 (aged 25)
Bournemouth
1993
17
MF
Simon Ratcliffe
(1967-02-08 ) 8 February 1967 (aged 27)
Norwich City
1989
18
MF
Paul Stephenson
(1968-01-02 ) 2 January 1968 (aged 26)
Millwall
1993
22
MF
Jon Hooker
(1972-03-31 ) 31 March 1972 (aged 22)
Gillingham
1994
23
MF
Paul Abrahams
(1973-10-31 ) 31 October 1973 (aged 20)
Colchester United
1995
Forwards
9
FW
Nicky Forster
(1973-09-08 ) 8 September 1973 (aged 20)
Gillingham
1994
11
FW
Robert Taylor
(1971-04-30 ) 30 April 1971 (aged 23)
Leyton Orient
1994
13
FW
Craig Ravenscroft
(1974-12-20 ) 20 December 1974 (aged 19)
Youth
1993
Loaned to Woking
16
FW
David McGhee
(1976-06-19 ) 19 June 1976 (aged 18)
Youth
1994
27
FW
Carl Asaba
(1973-01-28 ) 28 January 1973 (aged 21)
Dulwich Hamlet
1994
Loaned to Colchester United
Players who left the club mid-season
15
FW
Ian Benjamin
(1961-12-11 ) 11 December 1961 (aged 32)
Luton Town
1993
Released
23
FW
Dennis Bailey
(1965-12-13 ) 13 December 1965 (aged 28)
Queens Park Rangers
1995
Returned to Queens Park Rangers after loan
23
FW
Andy Ansah
(1969-03-19 ) 19 March 1969 (aged 25)
Southend United
1994
Returned to Southend United after loan
24
DF
George Parris
(1964-09-11 ) 11 September 1964 (aged 29)
Birmingham City
1994
Returned to Birmingham City after loan
Source:The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties
Coaching staff [ ]
Name
Role
David Webb
Manager
Kevin Lock
First Team Coach
Roy Johnson
Physiotherapist
Neil Mason
Assistant Physiotherapist
Fergus Dignan
Medical Officer
Statistics [ ]
Appearances and goals [ ]
Substitute appearances in brackets.
Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
Source: The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties
Goalscorers [ ]
Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
Source: The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties
Management [ ]
Name
Nat
From
To
Record All Comps
Record League
P
W
D
L
W %
P
W
D
L
W %
David Webb
13 August 1994
17 May 1995
57
29
14
14
0 50.88
46
25
10
11
0 54.35
Summary [ ]
Games played
57 (46 Second Division , 2 FA Cup , 4 League Cup , 3 Football League Trophy , 2 Football League play-offs )
Games won
29 (25 Second Division, 0 FA Cup, 2 League Cup, 2 Football League Trophy, 0 Football League play-offs)
Games drawn
14 (10 Second Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 0 Football League Trophy, 2 Football League play-offs)
Games lost
14 (11 Second Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy, 0 Football League play-offs)
Goals scored
95 (81 Second Division, 3 FA Cup, 4 League Cup, 5 Football League Trophy, 2 Football League play-offs)
Goals conceded
49 (39 Second Division, 4 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 3 Football League Trophy, 2 Football League play-offs)
Clean sheets
21 (22 Second Division, 0 FA Cup, 3 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy, 0 Football League play-offs)
Biggest league win
7–0 versus Plymouth Argyle , 17 December 1994
Worst league defeat
2–0 on 3 occasions
Most appearances
57, Nicky Forster (46 Second Division, 2 FA Cup, 4 League Cup, 3 Football League Trophy, 2 Football League play-offs)
Top scorer (league)
24, Nicky Forster
Top scorer (all competitions)
26, Nicky Forster
Transfers & loans [ ]
Kit [ ]
In February 1995, it was announced that Brentford had cancelled its sponsorship deal with KLM .[24] As a result, the Hummel International home shirt was replaced by an unbranded replica, which was devoid of sponsorship.[24]
Supplier: Hummel International (home shirt) / Core (home shorts & socks / away & goalkeeper kit) Sponsor(s): KLM
Source: [24]
Awards [ ]
References [ ]
^ a b c d Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2013). The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties . Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. p. 150. ISBN 9781906796723 .
^ a b c d e "Brentford results for the 1994–1995 season" . Statto.com . Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016 .
^ Street, Tim. "Scott sends warning over Nicky Forster signing" . getwestlondon . Retrieved 15 April 2016 .
^ Haynes, Graham (1998). A-Z Of Bees: Brentford Encyclopedia . Harefield, Middlesex: Yore Publications. p. 44. ISBN 1 874427 57 7 .
^ "Birmingham City results for the 1994–1995 season" . Statto.com . Archived from the original on 6 April 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016 .
^ White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford . Brentford FC. pp. 355–400. ISBN 0951526200 .
^ "England 1994–95" . Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 24 February 2010 .
^ Jon Hooker at Soccerbase
^ Paul Abrahams at Soccerbase
^ George Parris at Soccerbase
^ "Andy Ansah" . Barry Hugman's Footballers . Retrieved 14 April 2016 .
^ "Dennis Bailey" . 11v11.com . Retrieved 14 April 2016 .
^ Dean Williams at Soccerbase
^ Carl Asaba at Soccerbase
^ Billy Manuel at Soccerbase
^ a b c Griffin Gazette versus Bradford City . Quay Design of Poole. 11 February 1995. p. 2.
^ Sewell, Albert, ed. (1995). News Of The World Football Annual 1995–96 . Hammersmith, London: Invincible Press. p. 338. ISBN 0855432330 .
^ Lynch, Tony (1995). The Official P.F.A. Footballers Heroes . Random House. p. 150. ISBN 0-09-179135-9 .
National teams
League competitions
Level 1 Levels 2–4 Level 5 Levels 6–7 Levels 8–9
Isthmian League (Two , Three )
Combined Counties League (level 8 only )
Eastern Counties League (Premier , One )
Essex Senior League (level 8 only )
Hellenic League (Premier , One )
Kent League (level 8 only )
Midland Alliance (level 8 only )
Midland Football Combination (level 9 only )
North West Counties League (One , Two )
Northern Counties East League (Premier , One )
Northern League (One , Two )
South Midlands League (Premier , Senior )
(, )
Sussex County League (One , Two )
United Counties League (Premier , One )
Wessex League (level 8 only )
West Midlands (Regional) League (level 9 only )
Western League (Premier , One )
Cup competitions
FA cups Football League cups
European competitions