1972–73 Brentford F.C. season

Brentford
1972–73 season
Chairman Les Davey &
Walter Wheatley
Manager Frank Blunstone
Stadium Griffin Park
Third Division 22nd (relegated)
FA Cup First round
League Cup Second round
Top goalscorer League: Docherty,
Murray (7)
All: Docherty (8)
Highest home attendance 11,803
Lowest home attendance 6,067
Average home league attendance 8,742
← 1971–72 1973–74 →

During the 1972–73 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Third Division. The early-season departures of goalscorers John O'Mara and Bobby Ross and 15 consecutive away league defeats led to Brentford's relegation straight back to the Fourth Division.

Season summary

The signing of former Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur winger David Jenkins promised much, but he left the club on loan in March 1973.

Brentford's promotion to the Third Division at the end of the 1971–72 season meant that the club would compete in the third-tier for the first time since 1965–66.[1] Self-imposed financial austerity since the club's relegation to the Fourth Division had enabled the club's large debts to be paid off, but despite promotion and increasing attendances, manager Frank Blunstone would again be forced to maintain a small playing squad.[1] Blunstone turned down the chance to become assistant manager at Everton during the off-season.[1] Released in the wake of the promotion were defender Steven Tom, midfielder Brian Turner and winger Gordon Neilson and in came amateur goalkeeper Paul Priddy, midfielders David Court and Alan Murray, winger David Jenkins and Stewart Houston's loan was turned into a permanent transfer for a £15,000 fee.[1] The Brentford youth team was also reactivated after being disbanded due to the budget cuts of 1967, with Kevin Harding, Richard Poole and Graham Pearce being taken on as apprentices.[1] Gary Huxley would win an England Youth cap during the season.[1]

Despite losing and drawing the first two league matches of the season, three consecutive wins put Brentford in 2nd position by 2 September 1972.[2] 10 days later, forward John O'Mara, the previous season's Gallagher's Divisional Footballer Of The Year, was sold to Third Division rivals Blackburn Rovers for a club-record £50,000 fee.[1] Given that Chelsea had recently paid Southend United £100,000 for 25-goal forward Bill Garner, it was felt amongst the Brentford supporters that O'Mara had been sold cheaply.[1] The loss of O'Mara's goals and the departure of captain Bobby Ross shortly afterwards contributed a great deal to Brentford's relegation at the end of the season, given that the two players had scored over half of Brentford's goals during the previous campaign.[1]

By early October 1972, Brentford were in the bottom-six of the Third Division, but a profit of nearly £80,000 from the first eight league matches of the season and the £50,000 from the sale of John O'Mara allowed manager Frank Blunstone to pay £10,000 for Carlisle United forward Stan Webb.[1] By mid-December, Blunstone had just 12 fit players available and despite spending over a further £25,000 on attackers Roger Cross, Barry Salvage and Andy Woon, Brentford's slide towards relegation continued through the early months of 1973.[1] The mid-season signings failed to help arrest the slump and Brentford were relegated after taking just two points from the final six matches of the season.[2] Aside from the lack of goals (winger John Docherty top-scored with 8), Brentford lost 15 consecutive away league matches during the season, a new club record.[3]

League table

Pos Team Pld Home Away F A GA GD Pts
W D L F A W D L F A
1Bolton Wanderers 461841449779293073391.872+3461
2 Notts County 46174240126710273567471.426+2057
3 Blackburn Rovers 4612833416878233157471.213+1055
4 Oldham Athletic 4612744018797323672541.333+1854
5 Bristol Rovers 46174255203911223677561.375+2153
6 Port Vale 46156241216512154856690.812–1353
7 Bournemouth 461463441631010222866441.500+2250
8 Plymouth Argyle 46143643266710314074661.121+850
9 Grimsby Town 46162545184613224367611.098+648
10 Tranmere Rovers 46128338173812183556521.077+446
11 Charlton Athletic 46127446245414234369671.030+245
12 Wrexham 46119339233812163155541.019+145
13 Rochdale 468872226698262848540.889–645
14 Southend United 46136440144415214061541.130+744
15 Shrewsbury Town 461010331215414153346540.852–844
16 Chesterfield 46134637224514203957610.934–443
17 Walsall 46143637264415194056660.848–1043
18 York City 46810524145513183242460.913–441
19 Watford 46118432231913112543480.896–541
20 Halifax Town 4698629234712143043530.811–1041
21 Rotherham United 46124734275315173851650.785–1441
22 Brentford 46125633183218185151690.739–1837
23 Swansea City 46115737293416144451730.699–2237
24 Scunthorpe United 4687818252318154733720.458–3930

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points

Key
Division Champions, promoted
Promoted
Relegated

Results

Brentford's goal tally listed first.

Legend

Win Draw Loss

Football League Third Division

No. DateOpponentVenueResult AttendanceScorer(s)
1 12 August 1972Halifax TownH0–1 10,164
2 19 August 1972Oldham AthleticA1–1 6,106Houston
3 26 August 1972Blackburn RoversH4–0 9,427Arentoft (og), Houston, O'Mara, Graham
4 28 August 1972Bolton WanderersH2–1 11,803Allen, Murray
5 2 September 1972Plymouth ArgyleA1–0 7,833Murray
6 9 September 1972Swansea City H0–2 9,986
7 16 September 1972Port ValeA0–1 4,663
8 20 September 1972ChesterfieldA0–3 6,507
9 23 September 1972BournemouthH1–1 11,100Docherty
10 25 September 1972Bristol RoversH2–1 9,720Docherty, Jenkins
11 30 September 1972Notts CountyA0–1 8,152
12 7 October 1972Scunthorpe UnitedA0–1 3,378
13 9 October 1972Tranmere RoversH2–0 8,154Docherty, D'Arcy (og)
14 14 October 1972Walsall H2–0 9,493Houston, Docherty
15 21 October 1972Southend UnitedA0–4 7,205
16 28 October 1972RochdaleH1–0 9,201Docherty
17 4 November 1972Bristol Rovers A1–3 7,916Houston
18 11 November 1972Chesterfield H3–1 8,078Murray (pen), Webb, Houston
19 25 November 1972York CityH2–0 7,111Webb, Graham
20 28 November 1972Charlton Athletic A1–2 6,192Docherty
21 2 December 1972Shrewsbury Town A0–2 2,079
22 16 December 1972Grimsby TownA0–4 9,110
23 23 December 1972WrexhamH1–0 6,067Docherty
24 26 December 1972BournemouthA2–3 14,372Houston, Graham
25 30 December 1972Oldham AthleticH1–1 7,719Webb
26 6 January 1973 Blackburn Rovers A 1–2 6,534 Graham
27 13 January 1973 Rotherham United H 1–1 7,446 Cross
28 20 January 1973Plymouth ArgyleH0–2 7,075
39 26 January 1973Swansea CityA1–2 2,119Murray
30 2 February 1973Tranmere RoversA2–6 6,650Court, Murray
31 10 February 1973Port ValeH5–0 6,694Woon (3), Graham, Salvage
32 24 February 1973Grimsby TownH0–1 9,302
33 26 February 1973Charlton AthleticH1–0 9,929Salvage
34 3 March 1973Scunthorpe UnitedH1–0 7,896Murray
35 6 March 1973Rotherham UnitedA1–2 3,758Webb
36 10 March 1973WalsallA0–3 4,192
37 17 March 1973Southend United H1–2 8,051Cross
38 19 March 1973 Watford H 1–1 8,232 Cross
39 24 March 1973RochdaleA1–0 1,747Allen
40 31 March 1973York City A1–0 2,307Allen
41 4 April 1973Halifax TownA2–3 970Webb, Allen
42 7 April 1973Shrewsbury TownH1–2 6,758Salvage
43 14 April 1973WatfordA2–2 7,813Cross, Murray
44 20 April 1973Notts County H1–1 11,658Graham
45 23 April 1973 Wrexham A 1–4 2,611 Webb
46 28 April 1973Bolton Wanderers A0–2 21,917

FA Cup

RoundDateOpponentVenueResult Attendance Scorer
1R18 November 1972Yeovil Town A1–2 9,447 Allen

Football League Cup

RoundDateOpponentVenueResult Attendance Scorer
1R 16 August 1972 Cambridge United H 1–0 7,750 Docherty
2R5 September 1972Rotherham United A0–2 4,996

Playing squad

Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1972–73 season.
Pos. Name Nat. Date of birth (age) Signed from Signed in Notes
Goalkeepers
GK Gordon Phillips England 17 November 1946 (aged 25) Hayes 1963
GK Paul Priddy England 11 July 1953 (aged 19) Maidenhead United 1972
Defenders
DF Peter Gelson England 18 October 1941 (aged 30) Youth 1961
DF Alan Hawley (c) England 7 June 1946 (aged 26) Youth 1962
DF Alan Nelmes England 20 October 1948 (aged 23) Chelsea 1967
DF Terry Scales England 18 January 1951 (aged 21) West Ham United 1971
Midfielders
MF Michael Allen England 30 March 1949 (aged 23) Middlesbrough 1971
MF Paul Bence England 21 December 1948 (aged 23) Reading 1970
MF David Court England 1 March 1944 (aged 28) Luton Town 1972
MF John Docherty Scotland 29 April 1940 (aged 32) Reading 1970
MF Jackie Graham Scotland 16 July 1946 (aged 26) Guildford City 1970
MF David Jenkins England 2 September 1946 (aged 25) Tottenham Hotspur 1972 Loaned to Hereford United
MF Alan Murray England 5 November 1949 (aged 22) York City 1972
MF Barry Salvage England 21 December 1946 (aged 25) Queens Park Rangers 1973
Forwards
FW Roger Cross England 20 October 1948 (aged 23) Fulham 1973
FW Stewart Houston Scotland 20 August 1949 (aged 22) Chelsea 1972
FW Stan Webb England 6 December 1947 (aged 24) Carlisle United 1972
FW Andy Woon England 26 June 1952 (aged 20) Bognor Regis Town 1973
Players who left the club mid-season
GK Kieron Baker England 29 October 1949 (aged 22) Bournemouth 1972 Returned to Bournemouth after loan
FW John O'Mara England 19 March 1947 (aged 25) Wimbledon 1971 Transferred to Blackburn Rovers
FW Bobby Ross Scotland 10 May 1942 (aged 30) Shrewsbury Town 1966 Released

Coaching staff

Name Role
England Frank Blunstone Manager
England Eddie Lyons Trainer

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Pos Nat Name League FA Cup League Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK England Gordon Phillips 15 0 1 0 0 0 16 0
GK England Paul Priddy 25 0 0 0 2 0 27 0
DF England Peter Gelson 41 (1) 0 1 0 2 0 44 (1) 0
DF England Alan Hawley 43 0 0 0 2 0 45 0
DF England Alan Nelmes 35 (1) 0 1 0 2 0 38 (1) 0
DF England Terry Scales 41 0 1 0 2 0 44 0
MF England Michael Allen 26 4 1 1 1 0 28 5
MF England Paul Bence 33 (3) 0 0 0 1 0 34 (3) 0
MF England David Court 8 (4) 1 0 0 1 0 9 (4) 1
MF Scotland John Docherty 34 (2) 7 1 0 1 1 36 (2) 8
MF Scotland Jackie Graham 30 (1) 6 1 0 2 0 33 (1) 6
MF England David Jenkins 13 (5) 1 0 0 1 0 14 (5) 1
MF England Alan Murray 42 (3) 7 1 0 2 0 45 (3) 7
MF England Barry Salvage 16 3 — — 16 3
FW England Roger Cross 19 4 — — 19 4
FW Scotland Stewart Houston 39 6 1 0 2 0 42 6
FW England John O'Mara 4 1 — 1 0 5 1
FW Scotland Bobby Ross 7 0 — 1 (1) 0 8 (1) 0
FW England Stan Webb 24 6 1 0 — 25 6
FW England Andy Woon 5 (1) 3 — — 5 (1) 3
Players loaned in during the season
GK England Kieron Baker 6 0 — — 6 0

Goalscorers

Pos. Nat Player FL3 FAC FLC Total
MF Scotland John Docherty 7 0 1 8
MF England Alan Murray 7 0 0 7
MF Scotland Jackie Graham 6 0 0 6
FW Scotland Stewart Houston 6 0 0 6
FW England Stan Webb 6 0 0 6
MF England Michael Allen 5 1 0 6
FW England Roger Cross 4 — — 4
MF England Barry Salvage 3 — — 3
FW England Andy Woon 3 — — 3
MF England David Court 1 0 0 1
MF England David Jenkins 1 0 0 1
FW England John O'Mara 1 — 0 1
Opponents 2 0 0 2
Total511 153

Management

Name Nat From To Record All Comps Record League
PWDLW %PWDLW %
Frank Blunstone England 12 August 1972 28 April 1973 49 16 7 26 032.65 46 15 7 24 032.61

Summary

Games played 49 (46 Fourth Division, 1 FA Cup, 2 League Cup)
Games won 16 (15 Fourth Division, 0 FA Cup, 1 League Cup)
Games drawn 7 (7 Fourth Division, 0 FA Cup, 0 League Cup)
Games lost 26 (24 Fourth Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup)
Goals scored 53 (51 Fourth Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup)
Goals conceded 73 (69 Fourth Division, 2 FA Cup, 2 League Cup)
Clean sheets 13 (12 Fourth Division, 0 FA Cup, 1 League Cup)
Biggest league win 5–0 versus Port Vale, 10 February 1973
Worst league defeat 4–0 on two occasions; 6–2 versus Tranmere Rovers, 2 February 1973
Most appearances 48, Alan Murray (45 Fourth Division, 1 FA Cup, 2 League Cup)
Top scorer (league) 7, John Docherty, Alan Murray
Top scorer (all competitions) 8, John Docherty

Transfers & loans

Players transferred in
Date Pos. Name Previous Club Fee Ref.
June 1972 MF England Alan Murray England Middlesbrough Free [8]
July 1972 MF England David Jenkins England Tottenham Hotspur Free [8]
August 1972 MF England David Court England Luton Town Free [8]
October 1972 MF England Billy Stagg n/a n/a [8]
October 1972 FW England Stan Webb England Carlisle United £10,000 [8]
1972 FW Scotland Stewart Houston England Chelsea £15,000 [8]
1972 FW England Roy Cotton England Tottenham Hotspur n/a [9]
January 1973 FW England Roger Cross England Fulham £16,000 [8]
February 1973 MF England Barry Salvage England Queens Park Rangers £9,000 [8]
February 1973 FW England Andy Woon England Bognor Regis Town £1,000 [10]
Players loaned in
Date from Pos. Name From Date to Ref.
February 1973 GK England Kieron Baker England Bournemouth March 1973 [8]
Players transferred out
Date Pos. Name Subsequent club Fee Ref.
12 September 1972 FW England John O'Mara England Blackburn Rovers £50,000 [1]
Players loaned out
Date from Pos. Name To Date to Ref.
March 1973 MF England David Jenkins England Hereford United End of season [8]
Players released
Date Pos. Name Subsequent club Join date Ref.
October 1972 FW Scotland Bobby Ross England Cambridge United October 1972 [8]
May 1973 MF England David Court England Barnet 1973 [8]
May 1973 MF England Alan Murray England Doncaster Rovers July 1973 [8]
May 1973 GK England Gordon Phillips England Hillingdon Borough 1973 [8]

Awards

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 White, p. 288-291.
  2. 1 2 "Brentford results for the 1972-1973 season - Statto.com". Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  3. ↑ "Brentford scoring and sequence records - Statto.com". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. p. 392. ISBN 0951526200.
  5. ↑ Croxford, Lane & Waterman, p. 58-69.
  6. ↑ Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2011). The Big Brentford Book of the Seventies. Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. ISBN 978-1906796709.
  7. ↑ Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Yore Publications. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Croxford, Lane & Waterman, p. 70-74.
  9. ↑ Croxford, Lane & Waterman, p. 358.
  10. ↑ Croxford, Lane & Waterman, p. 266.
  11. 1 2 Croxford, Lane & Waterman, p. 295.
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