During the 1947–48 English football season,

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

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 tier ...

. In the Bees' first second-tier season since 1934–35, the club slumped to a 15th-place finish.

Season summary

After relegation to the

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 ...

at the end of the 1946–47 season,

were forced to cash in on their assets and received £16,000 from the sales of George Smith and

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

international Archie Macaulay. No less than 14 players departed

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a association football, 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 was in a predominantly resi ...

during the off-season, with five players coming in at a cost of nearly £20,000 – half back David Nelson and forwards Peter Buchanan,

Tommy Dawson Thomas Dawson may refer to: * Thomas Dawson (soldier) (1784–1846), American soldier and politician * Thomas Rayner Dawson Thomas Rayner Dawson (28 November 1889 – 16 December 1951) was an English chess problemist and is acknowledged as "t ...

Tommy Dougall Thomas Dougall (17 May 1921 – January 1997) was a Scottish professional footballer who played in the Football League for Sunderland and Brentford as an outside right. He later managed in non-League football Non-League football describes ...

and Jackie Gibbons, with Gibbons rejoining the club after making 11 appearances while an amateur during the 1938–39 season. After a poor start to the season,

Jimmy Hogan James Hogan (16 October 1882 – 30 January 1974) was an English football player and coach. He enjoyed some success as a footballer, reaching an FA Cup semi-final with Fulham in 1907–08, but his primary legacy is as a pioneer of the game ...

was brought in as a coach. It was long-serving trainer Bob Kane's final season with the club. Brentford had an awful start to the season, winning one and losing eight of the opening 9 matches to leave the club rooted to the bottom of the table. Bit-part half back

Cyril Toulouse Cyril Harvey Toulouse (24 December 1923 in Acton – 22 January 1980) was an English professional footballer who played for Brentford, Tottenham Hotspur, Guildford City and Oxford United. Playing career Toulouse joined Brentford from non-lea ...

was transferred to

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

in exchange for Jack Chisholm, who lead the team's recovery from the centre of the field. Just three defeats in 13 matches between late-September and mid-December 1946 finally lifted the club out of the relegation places. More players came and went in the second half of the season – Tony Harper 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 appear ...

came in from

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, 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 ...

, with

Percy Gleeson Percival Peter Gleeson (18 July 1921 – October 2015) was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward in the Football League for Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, Engl ...

, George Stewart and Arthur Shaw transferring out. Brentford finished a tumultuous season in 15th place, 11 points above the relegation zone and lost just four of the final 20 matches of the league campaign. The season ended with an irksome 1–0 defeat to local rivals (and Second Division champions)

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

in the Ealing Hospital Cup final. The club record for fewest goalscorers in a season was equalled, with just eight players registering a goal.

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 1947–48 season.'' * Sources: 100 Years of Brentford, Timeless Bees

Coaching staff

Statistics

Appearances and goals

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

Goalscorers