During the 1948–49 English football season,

Brentford 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 whi ...

competed in the

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

. It was Harry Curtis' final season as manager and he was replaced by

Jackie Gibbons Albert Henry Gibbons (10 April 1914 – 4 July 1984) was an English professional footballer and manager who played in the Football League for Tottenham Hotspur, Brentford and Bradford Park Avenue. After his retirement as a player, he managed in ...

in February 1949. Brentford ended the season in 18th-place, just one point away from a second relegation in three seasons, though the Bees advanced to the sixth round of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

for the third time in the club's history.

Season summary

manager Harry Curtis prepared conservatively for the 1948–49

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

season, with inside forward Viv Woodward and wing half Paddy Harris being his only veteran additions to the first team squad. The Essential Work Order made it almost impossible for the Bees to sign any player aged under 30, due to the club having spent £28,300 (almost double the club's net income, equivalent to £ in ) on six new players during the previous financial year, with only

Jack Chisholm Jack Richardson Chisholm (9 October 1924 – 24 August 1977) was an English footballer who played as a centre half. Known for his leadership and physical presence, Chisholm is regarded as one of the best defenders to have played for Plymouth A ...

and

Fred Monk Frederick John Monk (9 October 1920 – October 1987) was an English professional footballer and coach who played in Football League for Brentford and Aldershot. He is best remembered for his time with Brentford, for whom he made over 200 appe ...

aged under 30. Curtis elected to build for the future with the signings of young players Les Devonshire, Jimmy Anders, Micky Bull and

Billy Dare William Thomas Charles Dare (14 February 1927 – 8 May 1994) was an English footballer who played as a forward. He was described as "gutsy" and as a "stocky little battler" and was the first ever footballer to sign for a club on live television ...

, but Dare was the only one of the quartet who would go on to make an impact on the first team. On the eve of the season, it was announced that Curtis would step down from the manager's position at the end of the campaign. After two wins from the opening seven matches, Curtis signed Leicester City forward

Peter McKennan Peter Stewart McKennan (16 July 1918 – 28 September 1991) was a Scottish professional footballer who played as an inside forward in the Scottish and English leagues, most notably for Partick Thistle, for whom he scored 113 goals in 198 appeara ...

for £8,000. He failed to have an immediate effect on the team's goalscoring problems, but Brentford were able to stay afloat in mid-table due to the low number of goals conceded. Amidst a dire run of form in league matches around the turn of the year, McKennan finally came into form and scored 9 goals in a seven-match spell, firing Brentford into the sixth round of the

for the second time in four seasons. In the midst of the run was an 8–2 victory over

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

, in which McKennan became the third (and as of , most recent) Brentford player to score five goals in a

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

match. The Bury fixture also marked the first match in charge for

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

, having replaced Harry Curtis, who remained at

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a football ground in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow, England. It was the home ground of Brentford F.C. from its opening in September 1904 to August 2020. The ground is in a predominantly residential area and was ...

until the end of the season as an adviser to Gibbons. Brentford's FA Cup run ended with defeat to Leicester City in the sixth round, with the 38,678 crowd setting a new club record, which still stands as of . Brentford's form deserted them in the wake of the FA Cup exit, with just two victories during the remaining 14 league matches of the season. Centre half

Ron Greenwood Ronald Greenwood CBE (11 November 1921 – 9 February 2006) was an English football player and manager, best known for being manager of the English national football team from 1977 until 1982, as well as being manager of West Ham United for 13 ...

was bought from

Bradford Park Avenue Bradford (Park Avenue) Association Football Club is an association football club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in , at the sixth tier of the English football league system. The name derived from their former hom ...

for £9,000 in February 1949, with all of the money being recouped following the sale of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Jack Chisholm to Sheffield United for £16,000 a month later. Advanced preparations for the 1949–50 season continued in April, with the £7,000 purchase of Jackie Goodwin and Wally Quinton from

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

. Brentford slumped to an 18th-place finish, just one point above 21st-place

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

. Young forward Billy Dare was blooded in the final two months of the season and showed promise for the future with four goals in the final six matches.

League table

Results

:''Brentford's goal tally listed first.''

Legend

Football League Second Division

FA Cup

* Sources
Statto11v11
100 Years Of Brentford

Playing squad

:''Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1948–49 season.'' * Sources: 100 Years of Brentford, Timeless Bees

Coaching staff

Harry Curtis (21 August 1948 – 14 February 1949)

Jackie Gibbons (15 February – 7 May 1949)

Statistics

Appearances and goals

*Players listed in ''italics'' left the club mid-season. *Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

Goalscorers