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1997–98 Brentford F.C. Season
During the 1997–98 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Second Division. Just 11 wins in 46 matches saw the club relegated to the Third Division on the final day of the season. Season summary In August 1997 and following defeat in the 1997 Second Division play-off final, David Webb moved "upstairs" to become the club's new chief executive. Formerly Brentford manager since the beginning of the 1993–94 season, Webb acquired a majority shareholding of the club as part of a consortium with Tony Swaisland (chairman) and John Herting (director). Within days of the takeover and still without a manager, the spine of the previous season's team (Carl Asaba, Barry Ashby and Paul Smith) were sold for six-figure fees. Brian Statham was sold later in August and promising youngster Marcus Bent was transfer-listed. Replacements were found in the lower divisions, non-League and in Premier League reserve teams, with Paul Barrowcliff, Derek Bryan, Leon Townl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brentford F
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings which mark the start of the M4 corridor; in transport it also has two railway stations and Boston Manor Underground station on its north-west border with Hanwell. Brentford has a convenience shopping and dining venue grid of streets at its centre. Brentford at the start of the 21st century attracted regeneration of its little-used warehouse premises and docks including the re-modelling of the waterfront to provide more economically active shops, townhouses and apartments, some of which comprises Brentford Dock. A 19th and 20th centuries mixed social and private housing locality: New Brentford is contiguous with the Osterley neighbourhood of Isleworth and Syon Park and the Great West Road which has most of the largest business premises. H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leon Townley
Leon Townley (born 16 February 1976) is an English retired semi-professional footballer, best remembered for his spell as a defender with Brentford in the Football League between 1997 and 1999. After his release, he dropped into non-League football and retired from senior football in 2005. Career Tottenham Hotspur Townley began his career as a trainee at Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in 1992 and signed a professional contract at the age of 18 in 1994. Townley received his maiden call into the first team for Spurs' 1995 Intertoto Cup campaign, though he failed to make an appearance and was an unused substitute during an infamous 8–0 defeat to 1. FC Köln in July 1995. Townley left White Hart Lane in 1997, after failing to break into the first team. Brentford On 18 September 1997, Townley joined Second Division club Brentford on a three-year contract for a £25,000 fee, rising to £55,000 on appearances. He made his debut the following day with a starting appearance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Derek Bryan (footballer)
Derek Kirk Bryan (born 11 November 1974) is an English retired footballer, best remembered for his five-season spell in the Football League with Brentford. Described as having "lightning pace and an eye for goal", his career was effectively ended by knee injuries suffered in January 2000. Playing career Early years Bryan grew up in Hammersmith, London and began his career at Combined Counties League Premier Division club Bedfont Green. He joined Isthmian League Second Division club Hampton on 1 August 1996. Brentford Bryan signed for Second Division club Brentford on 29 August 1997 in a £50,000 deal. He made his debut for the club in a 0–0 league draw at Plymouth Argyle on 13 September, replacing Ryan Denys after 81 minutes. He made his first start in a 2–2 away draw with Bristol City on 3 March 1998 and capped his day by scoring the opening goal just before half time. Niggling injuries saw Bryan make just 11 appearances during the 1997–98 season, scoring two g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Barrowcliff
Paul Joseph Barrowcliff (born 15 June 1969) is an English retired semi-professional footballer who played as midfielder. He had a long career in non-League football and played one season in the Football League for Brentford. He is currently the physiotherapist at Metropolitan Police. Playing career Beginnings in non-League football (1988–1997) Barrowcliff got into football through attending the Boys' Brigade and scouts as a youth. He began his senior career at Isthmian League Second Division South club Ruislip Manor in 1988 and moved up a level to sign for Premier Division club Hayes in February 1989. While at Hayes, Barrowcliff featured on loan for Isthmian League First Division club Chalfont St Peter in January 1990. He moved across the Isthmian League Premier Division to sign for Harrow Borough in March 1990. He departed early in the 1990–91 season to move Isthmian Premier Division club St Albans City and left to join divisional rivals Woking in February 1990. Barro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reserve Team
In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players under contract to a club but who do not normally play in matches for the first team. Reserve teams often include back-up players from the first team, young players who need playing time to improve their skills, as well as members of the first team recovering from injury. In some countries, reserve or development teams compete in entirely separate competitions from first teams, while some countries allow reserve teams or farm teams to compete in the same league system as their club's first team, although usually in separate divisions. In association football Reserve teams usually consist of a combination of emerging youth players and first-team squad players. These teams are distinct from a club's youth team, which usually consists of players under a certain age and plays in an age-specific league. In England, Argentina and the United States the term ''reserve'' is commonly used to describe these teams. In Germany and Austria ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football League (EFL). Seasons typically run from August to May with each team playing 38 matches (playing all 19 other teams both home and away). Most games are played on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, with occasional weekday evening fixtures. The competition was founded as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from the Football League, founded in 1888, and take advantage of a lucrative television rights sale to Sky UK, Sky. From 2019 to 2020, the league's accumulated television rights deals were worth around £3.1 billion a year, with Sky and BT Group securing the domestic rights to broadcast 128 and 32 games respectively. The Premier League is a c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Non-League Football
Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to describe all football played at levels below those of the Premier League (20 clubs) and the three divisions of the English Football League (EFL; 72 clubs). Currently, a non-League team would be any club playing in the National League or below that level. Typically, non-League clubs are either semi-professional or amateur in status, although the majority of clubs in the National League are fully professional, some of which are former EFL clubs who have suffered relegation. The term ''non-League'' was commonly used in England long before the creation of the Premier League in 1992, prior to which the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League (from 2016, the EFL); at this time, the Football League was commonly referred t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marcus Bent
Marcus Nathan Bent (born 19 May 1978) is a retired English professional footballer. A former England under-21 international, the journeyman striker played 573 games and scored 113 goals for fourteen different clubs. His numerous transfer fees totalled over £10 million. He began his career at Brentford in 1995, before he signed with Crystal Palace in 1998, where he made his Premier League debut. The next year he joined Sheffield United via Port Vale. In 2000, he transferred to Blackburn Rovers, before he moved on to Ipswich Town in 2001. He spent 2003–04 on loan at Leicester City, before he transferred to Everton in 2004. Two years later he was sold on to Charlton Athletic. He spent the 2007–08 season on loan at Wigan Athletic, before he moved on to Birmingham City in 2008. He spent three years with Birmingham, during which he spent time on loan at Middlesbrough, Queens Park Rangers, Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Sheffield United. After leaving the club he spent six months ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brian Statham (footballer)
Brian Statham (born 21 May 1969) is an English retired professional footballer who made over 160 appearances in the Football League for Brentford as a right back. He also played league football for Tottenham Hotspur, Gillingham, Reading, Bournemouth and was capped by England at U21 level. Club career Tottenham Hotspur A right back, Statham began his career in the youth system at First Division club Tottenham Hotspur and turned professional in 1987. He broke through into the first team during the 1987–88 season and made 19 appearances. Statham managed eight further appearances during the 1988–89 season, before dropping out of the squad. He spent time away on loan during the 1990–91 and 1991–92 seasons and departed White Hart Lane in February 1992. Statham was awarded a benefit match by the club in July 2000. Brentford (loan and permanent transfer) In January 1992, Statham joined high-flying Third Division club Brentford on a one-month loan, with a view to a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Smith (footballer, Born 1971)
Paul William Smith (born 18 September 1971) is an English former professional footballer. Smith was born in East Ham, London and began his career as a trainee with Southend United, turning professional in 1990. He found his chances limited at Roots Hall and after a loan spell with Dover Athletic moved on to Brentford in August 1993 on a free transfer. In August 1997 he joined Gillingham, where he enjoyed the most successful spell of his career. He captained the Kent side for a lengthy spell and was also named the club's player of the year on an unprecedented four occasions, although his final reign ended in a bizarre dispute with chairman Paul Scally in which Smith reportedly refused to hand back the trophy until he was paid money he claimed the club owed him. While with Gillingham Smith played in both the 1999 and 2000 Football League Second Division play-off finals at Wembley, losing to Manchester City in 1999 on penalties, but achieving promotion to the second-tier for t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barry Ashby
Barry John Ashby (born 21 November 1970) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-half. He played for Watford, Brentford and Gillingham during a 17-year professional career. Ashby started his career at Watford, having played for Middlesex and London schools teams. As a schoolboy he first became attached to the club in October 1985, before becoming a trainee in July 1987. He won the 1988–89 FA Youth Cup with Watford, forming a defensive partnership with Jason Soloman. He signed a professional contract in December 1988. Played as both a centre half and full-back by Watford, Ashby's first goal was one of seven scored against Bradford City in December 1989. In March 1994 Watford signed Brentford centre-half Keith Millen for £65,000 and Ashby, who was valued at £35,000 in the exchange. Ashby went on to play 120 league games for Brentford in three years at the club, and was named player of the season in 1996–97. Ashby then signed for Gillingham. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
