# 1940–41 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1940–41 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League South, due to the cessation of competitive football for the duration of the Second World War. Though the Bees finished well down in the league placings, the club enjoyed some measure of success in the London War Cup, finishing as runners-up to Reading.

## Season summary

In Brentford's first full season of wartime football during the Second World War, low crowds and takings of just £30–40 per match during the first half of the Football League South season brought about fears that the club would be unable to fulfil the remaining fixtures of the season. Manager Harry Curtis, backed by his directors, elected to carry on and welcome respite was found in the new London War Cup, in which the Bees advanced to the final, largely helped by 8 goals in five matches from guest forward Eddie Perry. Despite a further two goals for Perry in the final, Brentford finished as runners-up to Reading, losing 3–2 at Stamford Bridge.

## League tables
### Football League South

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR |
| 19 | Aldershot | 24 | 14 | 2 | 8 | 73 | 68 | 1.074 |
| 20 | Brentford | 23 | 9 | 3 | 11 | 51 | 51 | 1.000 |
| 21 | Chelsea | 23 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 57 | 58 | 0.983 |

### London War Cup Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts |
| 1 | Brentford | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 25 | 20 | 1.250 | 13 |
| 2 | Crystal Palace | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 25 | 18 | 1.389 | 12 |
| 3 | Queens Park Rangers | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 26 | 26 | 1.000 | 11 |
| 4 | Aldershot | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 21 | 24 | 0.875 | 10 |
| 5 | Fulham | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 32 | 34 | 0.941 | 8 |
| 6 | Chelsea | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 19 | 26 | 0.731 | 6 |

## Results

    Brentford's goal tally listed first.

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League South

| No. | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 1 | 31 August 1940 | Clapton Orient | H | 2–2 | 1,123 | Wilkins, McKenzie (pen) |
| 2 | 7 September 1940 | Chelsea | A | 1–2 | 3,500 | Wilkins |
| 3 | 14 September 1940 | Charlton Athletic | H | 1–1 | 600 | McKenzie (pen) |
| 4 | 21 September 1940 | Arsenal | A | 1–3 | 1,700 | Hunt |
| 5 | 5 October 1940 | Clapton Orient | A | 0–1 | 500 | |
| 6 | 12 October 1940 | Charlton Athletic | A | 4–1 | 800 | Hunt (2), Townsend (2) |
| 7 | 19 October 1940 | Fulham | H | 8–3 | 1,300 | Hunt (3), Hopkins, McKenzie (pen), Townsend (2), Muttitt |
| 8 | 26 October 1940 | Arsenal | H | 3–3 | 1,200 | Townsend (2), Muttitt |
| 9 | 2 November 1940 | Portsmouth | H | 3–1 | 500 | Ferris, Cheetham, Hopkins |
| 10 | 16 November 1940 | West Ham United | H | 0–2 | 400 | |
| 11 | 23 November 1940 | Fulham | A | 0–3 | 600 | |
| 12 | 7 December 1940 | Reading | H | 2–3 | 600 | Hopkins, McKenzie (pen) |
| 13 | 14 December 1940 | Millwall | A | 0–3 | 1,250 | |
| 14 | 21 December 1940 | Portsmouth | A | 3–2 | 1,814 | Holliday (2), Wilkins |
| 15 | 25 December 1940 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 2–1 | 3,725 | Wilkins, Hunt |
| 16 | 28 December 1940 | Millwall | H | 3–2 | 1,759 | Hunt, Boulter |
| 17 | 15 March 1941 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–3 | 4,000 | Perry, Hopkins |
| 18 | 22 March 1941 | Crystal Palace | A | 0–5 | 2,638 | |
| 19 | 19 April 1941 | Millwall | H | 5–2 | 2,500 | Perry, Hopkins, Townsend |
| 20 | 3 May 1941 | West Ham United | A | 2–3 | 3,000 | Hopkins (2) |
| 21 | 10 May 1941 | Fulham | H | 2–3 | 2,670 | Bamford, Holliday |
| 22 | 17 May 1941 | Reading | A | 4–1 | 5,000 | Perry (3), Holliday |
| 23 | 24 May 1941 | Reading | H | 3–1 | 1,520 | Hopkins (3) |

### Football League War Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 1R (1st leg) | 15 February 1941 | Southampton | A | 2–2 | 1,815 | Hunt, Wilkins |
| 1R (2nd leg) | 22 February 1941 | Southampton | H | 5–2 | n/a | James, L. Smith, Perry (3) |
| 2R (1st leg) | 1 March 1941 | Chelsea | H | 2–2 | 4,520 | Hunt, Hopkins |
| 2R (2nd leg) | 8 March 1941 | Chelsea | A | 1–3 (lost 5–3 on aggregate) | 5,992 | Perry |

### London War Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| Grp | 4 January 1941 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–2 | 1,000 | Muttitt, Boulter |
| Grp | 11 January 1941 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–2 | 2,841 | Muttitt, L. Smith |
| Grp | 25 January 1941 | Chelsea | A | 1–0 | 1,318 | Davie |
| Grp | 1 February 1941 | Fulham | A | 1–4 | 2,500 | L. Smith |
| Grp | 8 February 1941 | Fulham | H | 7–4 | 2,428 | Hunt, Hopkins (3), Perry (2), McKenzie |
| Grp | 29 March 1941 | Chelsea | H | 2–2 | 1,654 | L. Smith, Townsend |
| Grp | 5 April 1941 | Aldershot | H | 4–2 | 1,960 | Perry (2), Hopkins (2) |
| Grp | 12 April 1941 | Aldershot | A | 2–2 | 4,000 | Wilkins, Perry |
| Grp | 14 April 1941 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 4–2 | 5,000 | Hopkins, Perry (2), L. Smith |
| Grp | 26 April 1941 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 0–0 | 6,000 | |
| SF | 31 May 1941 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 2–0 | 6,405 | Perry, Townsend |
| F | 7 June 1941 | Reading | N | 2–3 | 9,000 | Perry (2) |
* Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford

## Playing squad

       Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1940–41 season.
| Pos. | Name | Nat. | Date of birth (age) | Signed from | Signed in | Notes |
| Goalkeepers |||||||
| GK | Ted Gaskell | | (1916-12-19)19 December 1916 (aged 23) | Buxton | 1937 | |
| Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | |
| DF | Buster Brown | | (1910-09-06)6 September 1910 (aged 29) | Huddersfield Town | 1937 | |
| DF | Frank Gibson | | January 1920 (aged 20) | Youth | 1939 | |
| DF | George Poyser | | (1910-02-06)6 February 1910 (aged 30) | Port Vale | 1934 | |
| Midfielders |||||||
| HB | Vic Aicken | | (1914-10-29)29 October 1914 (aged 25) | Glentoran | 1937 | |
| HB | Jack Holliday | | (1908-12-19)19 December 1908 (aged 31) | Middlesbrough | 1932 | |
| HB | Joe James | | (1910-01-13)13 January 1910 (aged 30) | Battersea Church | 1929 | |
| HB | Billy Scott | | (1907-12-06)6 December 1907 (aged 32) | Middlesbrough | 1932 | |
| Forwards |||||||
| FW | Harry Bamford | | (1914-04-08)8 April 1914 (aged 26) | Hayes | 1936 | |
| FW | Sidney Beasley | | May 1920 (aged 20) | Youth | 1939 | |
| FW | Les Boulter | | (1913-08-31)31 August 1913 (aged 27) | Charlton Athletic | 1939 | |
| FW | Cyril Brown | | (1918-05-25)25 May 1918 (aged 22) | Felixstowe | 1939 | |
| FW | Tommy Cheetham | | (1910-10-11)11 October 1910 (aged 29) | Queens Park Rangers | 1939 | |
| FW | Stan Cousins | | August 1922 (aged 17–18) | Youth | 1939 | Guest for Clapton Orient |
| FW | Idris Hopkins | | (1910-10-11)11 October 1910 (aged 29) | Crystal Palace | 1932 | |
| FW | Ernest Muttitt | | (1908-07-24)24 July 1908 (aged 32) | Middlesbrough | 1932 | Guest for Clapton Orient |
| FW | Les Smith | | (1918-03-13)13 March 1918 (aged 22) | Petersham | 1934 | |
| FW | Bob Thomas | | (1919-08-02)2 August 1919 (aged 21) | Golders Green | 1939 | |
| FW | Len Townsend | | (1917-08-31)31 August 1917 (aged 23) | Hayes | 1937 | Guest for Leeds United |
| FW | George Wilkins | | (1919-10-27)27 October 1919 (aged 20) | Hayes | 1939 | |
| Guest players |||||||
| GK | George Duke | | (1920-09-06)6 September 1920 (aged 19) | Luton Town | 1940 | Guest from Luton Town |
| GK | John Jackson | | (1906-11-29)29 November 1906 (aged 33) | Chelsea | 1940 | Guest from Chelsea |
| GK | George Poland | | (1913-09-21)21 September 1913 (aged 26) | Wrexham | 1941 | Guest from Wrexham |
| DF | Harold Shepherdson | | (1918-10-22)22 October 1918 (aged 21) | Middlesbrough | 1940 | Guest from Middlesbrough |
| HB | Duncan McKenzie | | (1912-08-10)10 August 1912 (aged 28) | Middlesbrough | 1940 | Guest from Middlesbrough |
| FW | Pat Beasley | | (1913-07-16)16 July 1913 (aged 27) | Huddersfield Town | 1941 | Guest from Huddersfield Town |
| FW | Jock Davie | | (1913-02-13)13 February 1913 (aged 27) | Brighton & Hove Albion | 1940 | Guest from Brighton & Hove Albion |
| FW | George Eastham | | (1914-08-13)13 August 1914 (aged 26) | Blackpool | 1941 | Guest from Blackpool |
| FW | Ray Ferris | | (1920-09-22)22 September 1920 (aged 19) | Linfield | 1940 | Amateur, guest from Linfield |
| FW | Jackie Gibbons | | (1914-04-10)10 April 1914 (aged 26) | Tottenham Hotspur | 1941 | Amateur, guest from Tottenham Hotspur |
| FW | Eric Houghton | | (1910-06-29)29 June 1910 (aged 30) | Aston Villa | 1941 | Guest from Aston Villa |
| FW | Douglas Hunt | | (1914-05-19)19 May 1914 (aged 26) | Sheffield Wednesday | 1940 | Guest from Sheffield Wednesday |
| FW | George Mills | | (1908-12-29)29 December 1908 (aged 31) | Chelsea | 1941 | Guest from Chelsea |
| FW | Eddie Perry | | (1909-01-19)19 January 1909 (aged 31) | Doncaster Rovers | 1941 | Guest from Doncaster Rovers |
| FW | Trevor Smith | | (1910-09-08)8 September 1910 (aged 29) | Crystal Palace | 1941 | Guest from Crystal Palace |
| FW | Billy Wrigglesworth | | (1912-11-12)12 November 1912 (aged 27) | Manchester United | 1940 | Guest from Manchester United |
* Sources: Timeless Bees, Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939, 100 Years Of Brentford

## Coaching staff

| Name | Role |
| Harry Curtis | Manager |
| Jimmy Bain | Assistant Manager |
| Bob Kane | Trainer |
| Jack Cartmell | Assistant Trainer |

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

| Pos | Nat | Name | League | League | FL War Cup | FL War Cup | Lo War Cup | Lo War Cup | Total | Total |
| Pos | Nat | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | | Ted Gaskell | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| DF | | Buster Brown | 18 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 34 | 0 |
| DF | | Frank Gibson | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| DF | | George Poyser | 19 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 35 | 0 |
| HB | | Vic Aicken | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 |
| HB | | Jack Holliday | 19 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 35 | 4 |
| HB | | Joe James | 23 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| HB | | Billy Scott | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| FW | | Harry Bamford | 1 | 1 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| FW | | Sidney Beasley | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| FW | | Les Boulter | 2 | 1 | — | — | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| FW | | Cyril Brown | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Tommy Cheetham | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| FW | | Stan Cousins | — | — | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Idris Hopkins | 23 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 38 | 17 |
| FW | | Ernest Muttitt | 11 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 4 |
| FW | | Les Smith | 19 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 32 | 5 |
| FW | | Bob Thomas | — | — | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Len Townsend | 11 | 7 | — | — | 4 | 2 | 15 | 9 |
| FW | | George Wilkins | 15 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 28 | 6 |
| Players guested during the season |||||||||||
| GK | | George Duke | 18 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| GK | | John Jackson | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| GK | | George Poland | 5 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| DF | | Harold Shepherdson | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| HB | | Duncan McKenzie | 23 | 4 | — | — | 12 | 1 | 35 | 5 |
| FW | | Pat Beasley | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Jock Davie | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| FW | | George Eastham | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| FW | | Ray Ferris | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| FW | | Jackie Gibbons | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Eric Houghton | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Douglas Hunt | 16 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 27 | 12 |
| FW | | George Mills | — | — | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Eddie Perry | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 17 | 21 |
| FW | | Trevor Smith | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | | Billy Wrigglesworth | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### Goalscorers

| Pos. | Nat | Player | FLS | FLC | LWC | Total |
| FW | | Eddie Perry | 7 | 4 | 10 | 21 |
| FW | | Idris Hopkins | 10 | 1 | 6 | 17 |
| FW | | Douglas Hunt | 9 | 2 | 1 | 12 |
| FW | | Len Townsend | 7 | — | 2 | 9 |
| FW | | George Wilkins | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| HB | | Duncan McKenzie | 4 | — | 1 | 5 |
| FW | | Les Smith | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| HB | | Jack Holliday | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| FW | | Ernest Muttitt | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| FW | | Les Boulter | 1 | — | 1 | 2 |
| FW | | Tommy Cheetham | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| FW | | Ray Ferris | 1 | — | — | 1 |
| FW | | Harry Bamford | 1 | — | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Jock Davie | 0 | — | 1 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 51 | 10 | 29 | 90 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### Wartime international caps

| Pos. | Nat | Player | Caps | Goals | Ref |
| FW | | Idris Hopkins | 1 | 0 | |

### Management

| Name | Nat | From | To | Record All Comps | Record All Comps | Record All Comps | Record All Comps | Record All Comps | Record League | Record League | Record League | Record League | Record League |
| Name | Nat | From | To | P | W | D | L | W % | P | W | D | L | W % |
| Harry Curtis | | 31 August 1940 | 7 June 1941 | 39 | 15 | 10 | 14 | 038.46| | 23 | 9 | 3 | 11 | 039.13 |

### Summary

| Games played | 39 (23 Football League South, 4 Football League War Cup, 12 London War Cup) |
| Games won | 15 (9 Football League South, 1 Football League War Cup, 5 London War Cup) |
| Games drawn | 10 (3 Football League South, 2 Football League War Cup, 5 London War Cup) |
| Games lost | 14 (11 Football League South, 1 Football League War Cup, 2 London War Cup) |
| Goals scored | 90 (51 Football League South, 10 Football League War Cup, 29 London War Cup) |
| Goals conceded | 83 (51 Football League South, 9 Football League War Cup, 23 London War Cup) |
| Clean sheets | 3 (0 Football League South, 0 Football League War Cup, 3 London War Cup) |
| Biggest league win | 8–3 versus Fulham, 19 October 1940 |
| Worst league defeat | 5–0 versus Crystal Palace, 22 March 1941 |
| Most appearances | 39, Joe James (23 Football League South, 4 Football League War Cup, 12 London War Cup) |
| Top scorer (league) | 10, Idris Hopkins |
| Top scorer (all competitions) | 21, Eddie Perry |

## Transfers & loans

    Guest players' arrival and departure dates correspond to their first and last appearances of the season.
Guest players in :
| Date from | Pos. | Name | Previous Club | Date to | Ref. |
| 31 August 1940 | GK | George Duke | Luton Town | 3 May 1941 | |
| 31 August 1940 | HB | Duncan McKenzie | Middlesbrough | End of season | |
| 31 August 1940 | DF | Harold Shepherdson | Middlesbrough | 7 September 1940 | |
| 7 September 1940 | FW | Douglas Hunt | Sheffield Wednesday | 3 May 1941 | |
| 7 September 1940 | FW | Billy Wrigglesworth | Manchester United | 14 September 1940 | |
| 14 September 1940 | GK | John Jackson | Chelsea | 26 April 1941 | |
| 2 November 1940 | FW | Ray Ferris | Linfield | 2 November 1940 | |
| 16 November 1940 | FW | Jock Davie | Brighton & Hove Albion | 1 February 1941 | |
| 8 February 1941 | FW | Eddie Perry | Doncaster Rovers | End of season | |
| 15 March 1941 | FW | George Eastham | Blackpool | 22 March 1941 | |
| 5 April 1941 | GK | George Poland | Wrexham | End of season | |
| 26 April 1941 | FW | Pat Beasley | Huddersfield Town | 26 April 1941 | |
| 26 April 1941 | FW | Trevor Smith | Crystal Palace | 26 April 1941 | |
| 3 May 1941 | FW | Eric Houghton | Aston Villa | 3 May 1941 | |
| 17 May 1941 | FW | Jackie Gibbons | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 May 1941 | |
| Guest players out ||||||
| Date from | Pos. | Name | To | Date to | Ref. |
| 7 August 1940 | GK | Joe Crozier | Airdrieonians | End of season | |
| 9 November 1940 | FW | Len Townsend | Leeds United | 22 March 1941 | |
| n/a | HB | Stan Cousins | Clapton Orient | n/a | |
| n/a | FW | Ernest Muttitt | Clapton Orient | n/a | |
| Players released ||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | Subsequent club | Join date | Ref. |
| 25 October 1940 | DF | Doug Anderson | Falkirk | 25 October 1940 | |