Brentford is in the unusual position for a lower league club of having a benefactor, albeit a low profile one. Brentford’s relatively new chief executive thinks that they have been pursuing a prudent course while other clubs in the division have been splashing the cash to little effect. There will be no sacrifices for one year of transient glory. Attendances in the league are down by 15 per cent (although one a
Brentford is in the unusual position for a lower league club of having a benefactor, albeit a low profile one. Brentford’s relatively new chief executive thinks that they have been pursuing a prudent course while other clubs in the division have been splashing the cash to little effect. There will be no sacrifices for one year of transient glory. Attendances in the league are down by 15 per cent (although one always has to make some allowances for changes in the mix of clubs with relatively well supported ones like Leeds and Norwich being promoted).
One can read the article in a number of ways, but from an external perspective it looked like an elaborate justification for not being very ambitious. However, a Brentford fan I know commented: ‘The precarious nature of a small club’s finances – especially in London where there is greater competition for fans – makes this a sensible approach. Andy Scott has developed some excellent players in a very limited budget, though at the cost of consistent team performance. Ironically, when we’ve gone for ‘”names”, they haven’t always paid off.’
[Apologies for the wrong link on this story: this has now been corrected. Things were a bit frantic yesterday afternoon with the Newcastle story breaking].