Wikipedia

1995–96 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1995–96 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Second Division. After spending over two mid-season months in the relegation places, the club achieved a 15th-place finish. A bright spot was a run to the fourth round of the FA Cup, falling to First Division high-flyers Charlton Athletic.

Brentford
1995–96 season
ChairmanMartin Lange
ManagerDavid Webb
StadiumGriffin Park
Second Division15th
FA CupFourth round
League CupSecond round
Football League TrophyFirst round
Top goalscorerLeague: Taylor (11)
All: Taylor (16)
Highest home attendance7,878
Lowest home attendance3,104
Average home league attendance4,768

Season summary

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Brentford began the 1995–96 season with the majority of the squad that finished runners-up in the previous season still intact, with Shane Westley,[1] Simon Ratcliffe and Paul Stephenson the only players to depart.[2][3] Manager David Webb's only addition to the squad during the off-season was Southend United's teenage left-sided midfielder and full back Ijah Anderson.[4] Top scorer Nicky Forster looked set to depart for First Division club Crystal Palace for a £2,000,000 fee, but the Eagles' interest cooled.[5]

A win and a draw from the opening two games of the league season put Brentford in its highest league position of the season (6th), but a run of only four wins from the following 21 games left the club second-from-bottom at the mid-point of the season.[6] With Nicky Forster damaging knee ligaments in October 1995 and his subsequent goalscoring form faltering,[7] Robert Taylor was burdened with leading the team's strikeforce.[8] Taylor ended the season as the club's top scorer, with 16 goals.[9]

A memorable 2–1 victory over First Division club Norwich City at Carrow Road on in the FA Cup third round on 6 January 1996 provided the spark needed for a revival of the team's league form,[5][10] with 19 of a possible 30 points being won between mid-January and mid-March to climb to 13th in the table.[6] Four wins from the final seven matches of the season led Brentford to a 15th-place finish in the Second Division.[6] The FA Cup run ended with a 3–2 defeat at the hands of high-flying First Division club Charlton Athletic in the fourth round.[6]

League table

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Main article: 1995–96 Football League Second Division

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
13 Bristol City 46 15 15 16 55 60 −5 60
14 Bournemouth 46 16 10 20 51 70 −19 58
15 Brentford 46 15 13 18 43 49 −6 58
16 Rotherham United 46 14 14 18 54 62 −8 56
17 Burnley 46 14 13 19 56 68 −12 55
Source: [citation needed]

Results

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Brentford's goal tally listed first.

Legend

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Win Draw Loss

Pre-season and friendlies

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Date Opponent Venue Result Scorer(s)
19 July 1995 Hampton A 7–0 Forster (3), Ashby (2), Statham, Grainger (pen)
20 July 1995 Basingstoke Town A 1–1 Ravenscroft
22 July 1995 St Albans City A 5–1 Grainger (2, 1 pen), Taylor, Forster, Stephenson
24 July 1995 Hitchin Town A 3–1 Omigie (2), Annon
26 July 1995 Kingstonian A 2–1 Forster, Grainger
28 July 1995 Colchester United A 1–1 Taylor
1 August 1995 Barnet A 2–3 Abrahams, Forster
5 August 1995 Yeading A 5–2 Ravenscroft (2), Annon, Hooker, Omigie
7 August 1995 Walton & Hersham A 4–0 Forster, Smith, Taylor, Grainger (pen)
30 August 1995 Harrow Borough A 5–0 Annon (2, 1 pen), Hutchings, Hooker, Omigie

Football League Second Division

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No. Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorer(s)
1 12 August 1995 York City A 2–2 3,239 Smith, Forster
2 19 August 1995 Oxford United H 1–0 5,516 Taylor
3 26 August 1995 Burnley A 0–1 9,586
4 29 August 1995 Hull City H 1–0 4,535 Taylor
5 2 September 1995 Swindon Town H 0–2 7,878
6 9 September 1995 Rotherham United A 0–1 3,061
7 12 September 1995 Bristol City A 0–0 5,054
8 16 September 1995 Walsall H 1–0 4,717 Taylor
9 23 September 1995 Bristol Rovers A 0–2 5,131
10 30 September 1995 Chesterfield H 1–2 4,734 McGhee
11 7 October 1995 Blackpool H 1–2 5,313 McGhee
12 14 October 1995 Stockport County A 1–1 6,228 Smith
13 21 October 1995 Peterborough United H 3–0 4,865 Bates (2), Grainger (pen)
14 28 October 1995 Crewe Alexandra A 1–3 3,835 Forster
15 1 November 1995 Notts County A 0–4 4,005
16 4 November 1995 Shrewsbury Town H 0–2 4,104
17 18 November 1995 Bournemouth A 0–1 3,894
18 25 November 1995 Bradford City H 2–1 4,237 Taylor (2)
19 9 December 1995 Bristol Rovers H 0–0 5,679
20 16 December 1996 Chesterfield A 2–2 4,016 Smith, Ansah
21 22 December 1996 Wrexham A 2–2 3,670 Taylor, Martin
22 26 December 1995 Brighton & Hove Albion H 0–1 5,794
23 13 January 1996 Oxford United A 1–2 5,574 Ashby
24 20 January 1996 York City H 2–0 3,915 Bates, Taylor
25 30 January 1996 Wycombe Wanderers H 1–0 4,616 Taylor
26 3 February 1996 Burnley H 1–0 5,195 Forster
27 10 February 1996 Carlisle United A 1–2 5,143 Bates
28 17 February 1996 Bristol City H 2–2 5,213 McGhee, Taylor
29 21 February 1996 Swindon Town A 2–2 8,814 Abrahams (2)
30 24 February 1996 Walsall A 1–0 3,506 Abrahams
31 27 February 1996 Rotherham United H 1–1 3,446 Grainger
32 2 March 1996 Brighton & Hove Albion A 0–0 5,914
33 5 March 1996 Hull City A 1–0 2,284 Anderson
34 9 March 1996 Wrexham H 1–0 4,579 Anderson
35 12 March 1996 Swansea City A 1–2 3,538 Forster
36 16 March 1996 Wycombe Wanderers A 1–2 4,912 Forster
37 19 March 1996 Carlisle United H 1–1 3,104 Grainger
38 23 March 1996 Swansea City H 0–0 4,378
39 30 March 1996 Blackpool A 0–1 5,899
40 2 April 1996 Stockport County H 1–0 3,274 Smith
41 6 April 1996 Crewe Alexandra H 2–1 4,408 Taylor (2)
42 8 April 1996 Peterborough United A 1–0 4,343 McGhee
43 13 April 1996 Notts County H 0–0 4,588
44 20 April 1996 Shrewsbury Town A 1–2 2,711 McGhee
45 27 April 1996 Bradford City A 1–2 7,730 Bent
46 4 May 1996 Bournemouth H 2–0 6,091 Asaba (2)

FA Cup

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Main article: 1995–96 FA Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorer(s)
R1 11 November 1995 Farnborough Town H 1–1 4,711 Bent
R1 (replay) 22 November 1995 Farnborough Town A 4–0 3,581 Smith, Taylor (2), Bent
R2 2 December 1995 Bournemouth A 1–0 4,451 Taylor
R3 6 January 1996 Norwich City A 2–1 10,082 Newsome (og), Bent
R4 7 February 1996 Charlton Athletic A 2–3 15,000 Ashby, Smith

League Cup

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Main article: 1995–96 Football League Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorer(s)
R1 (1st leg) 15 August 1995 Walsall A 2–2 2,405 Harvey, Forster
R1 (2nd leg) 22 August 1995 Walsall H 3–2 (won 5–4 on aggregate) 3,549 Taylor, Anderson, McGhee
R2 (1st leg) 19 September 1995 Bolton Wanderers A 0–1 5,243
R2 (2nd leg) 3 October 1995 Bolton Wanderers H 2–3 (lost 4–2 on aggregate) 4,861 Forster, Grainger (pen)

Football League Trophy

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Main article: 1995–96 Football League Trophy
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorer(s)
SR1 (match 1) 27 September 1995 Bournemouth A 1–0 1,092 Taylor
SR1 (match 2) 17 October 1995 Exeter City H 1–1 1,431 Forster
  • Source: Statto, The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties[11]

Playing squad

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Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1995–96 season.
Position Name Nationality Date of birth (age) Signed from Signed in Notes
Goalkeepers
GK Kevin Dearden   (1970-03-08)8 March 1970 (aged 25) Tottenham Hotspur 1993
GK Tamer Fernandes   (1974-12-07)7 December 1974 (aged 20) Youth 1993
Defenders
DF Ijah Anderson   (1975-12-30)30 December 1975 (aged 19) Southend United 1995
DF Barry Ashby   (1970-11-21)21 November 1970 (aged 24) Watford 1994
DF Jamie Bates (c)   (1968-02-24)24 February 1968 (aged 27) Youth 1986
DF Paul Davis   (1961-12-09)9 December 1961 (aged 33) Arsenal 1995
DF Lee Harvey   (1966-12-21)21 December 1966 (aged 28) Nottingham Forest 1993
DF Carl Hutchings   (1974-09-24)24 September 1974 (aged 20) Youth 1993
DF Brian Statham   (1969-05-21)21 May 1969 (aged 26) Tottenham Hotspur 1992
Midfielders
MF Paul Abrahams   (1973-10-31)31 October 1973 (aged 21) Colchester United 1995 Loaned to Colchester United
MF Jon Hooker   (1972-03-31)31 March 1972 (aged 23) Gillingham 1994 Loaned to Bishop's Stortford
MF Gus Hurdle   (1973-10-14)14 October 1973 (aged 21) Carshalton Athletic 1993
MF Dean Martin   (1972-08-31)31 August 1972 (aged 22) KA 1995
MF David McGhee   (1976-06-19)19 June 1976 (aged 19) Youth 1994
MF Craig Ravenscroft   (1974-12-20)20 December 1974 (aged 20) Youth 1993
MF Paul Smith   (1971-09-18)18 September 1971 (aged 23) Southend United 1993
Forwards
FW Carl Asaba   (1973-01-28)28 January 1973 (aged 22) Dulwich Hamlet 1994
FW Marcus Bent   (1978-05-19)19 May 1978 (aged 17) Youth 1995
FW Nicky Forster   (1973-09-08)8 September 1973 (aged 21) Gillingham 1994
FW Joe Omigie   (1972-06-13)13 June 1972 (aged 23) Donna 1994 Loaned to Woking
FW Robert Taylor   (1971-04-30)30 April 1971 (aged 24) Leyton Orient 1994
Players who left the club mid-season
DF Martin Grainger   (1972-08-23)23 August 1972 (aged 22) Colchester United 1993 Transferred to Birmingham City
MF Darren Annon   (1972-02-17)17 February 1972 (aged 23) Carshalton Athletic 1994 Released
MF Andy Ansah   (1969-03-19)19 March 1969 (aged 26) Southend United 1995 Returned to Southend United after loan
MF Scott Canham   (1974-11-11)11 November 1974 (aged 20) West Ham United 1996 Returned to West Ham United after loan
MF David Greene   (1973-10-26)26 October 1973 (aged 21) Luton Town 1996 Returned to Luton Town after loan
MF Denny Mundee   (1968-10-10)10 October 1968 (aged 26) Bournemouth 1993 Released
FW Andy Sussex   (1964-11-23)23 November 1964 (aged 30) Southend United 1995 Returned to Southend United after loan
  • Source: The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties[12]

Coaching staff

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Name Role
  David Webb Manager
  Kevin Lock First Team Coach
  Graham Benstead Goalkeeping Coach
  Roy Johnson Physiotherapist
  Fergus Dignan Medical Officer

Statistics

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Appearances and goals

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Substitute appearances in brackets.
Pos Nat Name League FA Cup League Cup FL Trophy Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK   Kevin Dearden 41 0 3 0 3 0 1 0 48 0
GK   Tamer Fernandes 5 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 7 0
DF   Ijah Anderson 25 2 1 (2) 0 2 1 0 (1) 0 28 (3) 3
DF   Barry Ashby 31 (2) 1 4 1 4 0 2 0 41 (2) 2
DF   Jamie Bates 36 4 5 0 4 0 2 0 47 4
DF   Paul Davis 5 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 8 0
DF   Martin Grainger 33 3 5 0 4 1 2 0 44 4
DF   Lee Harvey 38 (2) 0 4 (1) 0 2 (1) 1 1 0 45 (4) 1
DF   Carl Hutchings 20 (3) 0 5 0 0 0 0 (1) 0 25 (4) 0
DF   Brian Statham 17 0 1 0 4 0 2 0 24 0
MF   Paul Abrahams 14 (3) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 (3) 3
MF   Darren Annon 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 (1) 0
MF   Marcus Bent 8 (4) 1 4 3 0 0 0 0 12 (4) 4
MF   Jon Hooker 4 0 0 (2) 0 1 0 0 0 5 (2) 0
MF   Gus Hurdle 11 (3) 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 13 (3) 0
MF   Dean Martin 14 (5) 1 4 (1) 0 — 1 0 18 (6) 1
MF   David McGhee 31 (5) 5 4 0 2 (1) 1 1 (1) 0 38 (7) 6
MF   Denny Mundee 5 (1) 0 — 1 (1) 0 0 0 6 (2) 0
MF   Craig Ravenscroft 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
MF   Paul Smith 46 4 5 2 4 0 2 0 57 6
FW   Carl Asaba 5 (5) 2 1 0 1 0 1 0 8 (5) 2
FW   Nicky Forster 37 (1) 5 3 0 4 2 2 1 46 (1) 8
FW   Joe Omigie 3 (8) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 (8) 0
FW   Robert Taylor 42 11 4 3 4 1 2 1 52 16
Players loaned in during the season
MF   Andy Ansah 6 1 — — — 6 1
MF   Scott Canham 14 0 — — — 14 0
MF   David Greene 11 0 — — — 11 0
FW   Andy Sussex 3 0 — — — 3 0
  • Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
  • Source: The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties[12]

Goalscorers

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Pos. Nat Player FL2 FAC FLC FLT Total
FW   Robert Taylor 11 3 1 1 16
FW   Nicky Forster 5 0 2 1 8
MF   David McGhee 5 0 1 0 6
MF   Paul Smith 4 2 0 0 6
DF   Jamie Bates 4 0 0 0 4
DF   Martin Grainger 3 0 1 0 4
MF   Marcus Bent 1 3 0 0 4
MF   Paul Abrahams 3 0 0 0 3
DF   Ijah Anderson 2 0 1 0 3
FW   Carl Asaba 2 0 0 1 2
DF   Barry Ashby 1 1 0 0 2
FW   Andy Ansah 1 — — — 1
FW   Dean Martin 1 0 — 0 1
MF   Lee Harvey 0 0 1 0 1
Opponents 0 1 0 0 1
Total 43 11 7 2 63
  • Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
  • Source: The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties[12]

International caps

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Pos Nat Player Caps Goals Ref
MF   Gus Hurdle 2 0 [13]

Management

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Name Nat From To Record All Comps Record League
P W D L W % P W D L W %
David Webb   12 August 1995 4 May 1996 57 20 16 21 035.09 46 15 13 18 032.61

Summary

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Games played 57 (46 Second Division, 5 FA Cup, 4 League Cup, 2 Football League Trophy)
Games won 20 (15 Second Division, 3 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy)
Games drawn 16 (13 Second Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy)
Games lost 21 (18 Second Division, 1 FA Cup, 2 League Cup, 0 Football League Trophy)
Goals scored 62 (43 Second Division, 10 FA Cup, 7 League Cup, 2 Football League Trophy)
Goals conceded 63 (49 Second Division, 5 FA Cup, 8 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy)
Clean sheets 21 (18 Second Division, 2 FA Cup, 0 League Cup, 1 Football League Trophy)
Biggest league win 3–0 versus Peterborough United, 21 October 1995
Worst league defeat 4–0 versus Notts County, 1 November 1995
Most appearances 63, Paul Smith (46 Second Division, 5 FA Cup, 4 League Cup, 2 Football League Trophy)
Top scorer (league) 11, Robert Taylor
Top scorer (all competitions) 16, Robert Taylor

Transfers & loans

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Players transferred in
Date Pos. Name Previous Club Fee Ref.
31 July 1995 DF   Ijah Anderson   Southend United Free [4]
12 September 1995 MF   Paul Davis   Arsenal Free [14]
12 October 1995 MF   Dean Martin   KA Free [15]
Players loaned in
Date from Pos. Name From Date to Ref.
15 November 1995 FW   Andy Ansah   Southend United 27 December 1995 [16]
12 December 1995 FW   Andy Sussex   Southend United 12 January 1996 [17]
19 January 1996 MF   Scott Canham   West Ham United 20 April 1996 [18]
1 March 1996 MF   David Greene   Luton Town 13 April 1996 [19]
Players transferred out
Date Pos. Name Subsequent club Fee Ref.
4 August 1995 MF   Simon Ratcliffe   Gillingham Free [2]
7 August 1995 MF   Paul Stephenson   York City £35,000 [3]
10 August 1995 DF   Shane Westley   Cambridge United Free [1]
25 March 1996 DF   Martin Grainger   Birmingham City £400,000 [20]
Players loaned out
Date from Pos. Name To Date to Ref.
September 1995 MF   Joe Omigie   Woking October 1995 [21]
29 December 1995 MF   Paul Abrahams   Colchester United 20 February 1996 [22]
Players released
Date Pos. Name Subsequent club Join date Ref.
18 October 1995 MF   Denny Mundee   Brighton & Hove Albion 19 October 1995 [23]
29 February 1996 MF   Darren Annon   Kingstonian March 1996 [24]
30 June 1996 DF   Corey Campbell   Dover Athletic 1996 [25]
30 June 1996 MF   Paul Davis Retired [26]
30 June 1996 MF   Jon Hooker   Bishop's Stortford 1996 [25]
30 June 1996 MF   Dean Martin   KA 1996 [25]
30 June 1996 MF   Craig Ravenscroft   Kingstonian August 1996 [25]

Kit

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Supplier: Core
Sponsor(s): Ericsson

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Goalkeeper

Source: Brentford F.C.

Awards

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References

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  1. ^ a b Shane Westley at Soccerbase
  2. ^ a b Simon Ratcliffe at Soccerbase
  3. ^ a b Paul Stephenson at Soccerbase
  4. ^ a b Ijah Anderson at Soccerbase
  5. ^ a b "Brentford duo back to the fore". The Independent. 8 January 1996. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  6. ^ a b c d "Brentford results for the 1995–1996 season". Statto.com. 1 September 2016. Archived from the original on 1 September 2016. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  7. ^ Croxford, Lane & Waterman 2013, p. 202.
  8. ^ Street, Tim. "Scott sends warning over Nicky Forster signing". getwestlondon. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  9. ^ a b Sewell, Albert, ed. (1996). News Of The World Football Annual 1996–97. Hammersmith, London: Invincible Press. p. 352. ISBN 000218737X.
  10. ^ a b "Moment in Time: Norwich City". www.brentfordfc.com. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  11. ^ Croxford, Lane & Waterman 2013, p. 182-199, 460–463.
  12. ^ a b c Croxford, Lane & Waterman 2013, p. 481.
  13. ^ "Player x-ray :: Gus Hurdle :: Barbados". www.thefinalball.com. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  14. ^ Paul Davis at Soccerbase
  15. ^ Dean Martin at Soccerbase
  16. ^ Andy Ansah at Soccerbase
  17. ^ "Andy Sussex". 11v11.com. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  18. ^ "Scott Canham". 11v11.com. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  19. ^ "David Greene". 11v11.com. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  20. ^ Martin Grainger at Soccerbase
  21. ^ Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2013). The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties. Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. p. 201. ISBN 9781906796723.
  22. ^ Paul Abrahams at Soccerbase
  23. ^ Denny Mundee at Soccerbase
  24. ^ "Darren Annon". Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  25. ^ a b c d Griffin Gazette versus AFC Bournemouth. Quay Design of Poole. 4 May 1996. p. 2.
  26. ^ "Paul Davis". Arsenal.com. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  27. ^ Brentford's Official Matchday Magazine versus Peterborough United. 3 May 1997. p. 3.
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