# 1965–66 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1965–66 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Third Division. After an awful first half of the season, Brentford dropped into the relegation places in January 1966 and failed to recover, ending the club's three-season spell in the Third Division.

## Season summary

The lack of incoming transfer activity during the 1965 off-season served to highlight the view at Griffin Park that Brentford's squad was strong enough to secure promotion to the Second Division during the 1965–66 season. The campaign began with a rousing 6–1 victory over local rivals Queens Park Rangers at Griffin Park, courtesy of goals from John Fielding, Joe Bonson, Ian Lawther and a Micky Block hat-trick. The win gave way to three defeats and a draw in the following four matches, but consecutive victories over Shrewsbury Town and Swansea Town in mid-September proved to be a false drawn. Brentford would win just one more league match before the end of 1965 and the team's plight was worsened by the departures of influential attackers Jimmy Bloomfield, Mark Lazarus and John Fielding after disputes with manager Tommy Cavanagh. Outside forward John Docherty was bought back from Sheffield United for his second spell at Griffin Park in December 1965, but Brentford began 1966 entrenched in the relegation places.
Misfiring forward Joe Bonson was sold in January 1966 and though manager Cavanagh was provided with the funds to purchase replacement forwards Brian Etheridge, John Regan and Bobby Ross, the new signings failed to help the team convert draws into all-important wins, with four matches being drawn in March. Three consecutive defeats in early April left the supporters clamouring for Cavanagh's head and despite a brief respite after a 2–0 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion, a 5–0 defeat away to Exeter City on 16 April led chairman Jack Dunnett to dispense with Cavanagh's services. Youth team manager Ian Black won, drew and lost each of the following three matches in a caretaker capacity, before Billy Gray was appointed as manager.
Gray began his reign with Brentford in 23rd place and three points from safety with five matches remaining. A 3–0 home defeat to Mansfield Town in his first match in charge effectively ended all survival hopes after the gap to safety opened up to five points. A draw and a win versus Watford and Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic respectively in the following two matches put the Bees back within two points of safety, but defeats in the final two matches of the season sealed the club's relegation to the Fourth Division.
Three club records were set or equalled during the season:
* Most away Football League games without a win: 21 (24 April 1965 – 16 April 1966)
* Record home Football League defeat: 0–5 versus Bristol Rovers, 5 February 1966
* First substitute to be utilised: Hugh McLaughlin (replaced Billy Cobb versus Oldham Athletic, Third Division, 23 October 1965)

## League table

| Pos | Team v t e | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 20 | Oldham Athletic | 46 | 12 | 13 | 21 | 55 | 81 | 0.679 | 37 | |
| 21 | Southend United | 46 | 16 | 4 | 26 | 54 | 83 | 0.651 | 36 | Relegated |
| 22 | Exeter City | 46 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 53 | 79 | 0.671 | 35 | Relegated |
| 23 | Brentford | 46 | 10 | 12 | 24 | 48 | 69 | 0.696 | 32 | Relegated |
| 24 | York City | 46 | 9 | 9 | 28 | 53 | 106 | 0.500 | 27 | Relegated |

## Results

    Brentford's goal tally listed first.

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League Third Division

| No. | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 1 | 21 August 1965 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 6–1 | 15,000 | Fielding, (Block 3, 1 pen), Bonson, Lawther |
| 2 | 24 August 1965 | Grimsby Town | A | 2–3 | 5,002 | Block, Gelson |
| 3 | 28 August 1965 | Bristol Rovers | A | 1–1 | 12,160 | Cobb |
| 4 | 4 September 1965 | York City | H | 0–1 | 10,850 | |
| 5 | 11 September 1965 | Oxford United | A | 0–2 | 10,003 | |
| 6 | 14 September 1965 | Shrewsbury Town | H | 4–0 | 10,950 | Lazarus (2), Lawther, Cobb |
| 7 | 18 September 1965 | Swansea Town | H | 2–0 | 10,300 | Lawther, Block |
| 8 | 25 September 1965 | Walsall | A | 1–1 | 8,384 | Cobb |
| 9 | 2 October 1965 | Workington | H | 0–1 | 8,700 | |
| 10 | 6 October 1965 | Shrewsbury Town | A | 0–0 | 4,982 | |
| 11 | 9 October 1965 | Scunthorpe United | H | 0–1 | 7,720 | |
| 12 | 16 October 1965 | Watford | A | 1–1 | 12,337 | Lawther |
| 13 | 23 October 1965 | Oldham Athletic | H | 0–0 | 8,110 | |
| 14 | 30 October 1965 | Gillingham | A | 0–1 | 8,669 | |
| 15 | 6 November 1965 | Millwall | H | 1–2 | 14,800 | Higginson |
| 16 | 20 November 1965 | Exeter City | H | 1–2 | 5,940 | Cobb |
| 17 | 23 November 1965 | Grimsby Town | H | 3–2 | 5,180 | Cobb, Thomson, Lawther |
| 18 | 27 November 1965 | Reading | A | 0–2 | 6,128 | |
| 19 | 11 December 1965 | Mansfield Town | A | 0–2 | 3,637 | |
| 20 | 1 January 1966 | Scunthorpe United | A | 2–3 | 5,568 | Block, Docherty |
| 21 | 8 January 1966 | Peterborough United | H | 1–0 | 7,380 | Lawther |
| 22 | 15 January 1966 | Oldham Athletic | A | 1–1 | 12,029 | Cobb |
| 23 | 29 January 1966 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 0–1 | 14,493 | |
| 24 | 5 February 1966 | Bristol Rovers | H | 0–5 | 6,240 | |
| 25 | 12 February 1966 | Swindon Town | A | 1–2 | 12,376 | Docherty |
| 26 | 26 February 1966 | Oxford United | H | 5–1 | 7,100 | Docherty, Cobb, Etheridge, Lawther (2) |
| 27 | 1 March 1966 | Southend United | H | 2–0 | 9,000 | Lawther, Curley |
| 28 | 5 March 1966 | Swindon Town | H | 0–1 | 9,900 | |
| 29 | 7 March 1966 | Southend United | A | 0–1 | 7,029 | |
| 30 | 12 March 1966 | Swansea Town | A | 1–1 | 7,925 | Regan |
| 31 | 19 March 1966 | Walsall | H | 2–2 | 7,900 | Regan, Docherty (pen) |
| 32 | 26 March 1966 | Workington | A | 1–1 | 2,207 | Docherty |
| 33 | 28 March 1966 | York City | A | 1–1 | 2,598 | Etheridge |
| 34 | 2 April 1966 | Millwall | A | 0–1 | 13,385 | |
| 35 | 8 April 1966 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 0–2 | 17,176 | |
| 36 | 9 April 1966 | Hull City | H | 2–4 | 9,920 | Lawther, Docherty |
| 37 | 11 April 1966 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 2–0 | 7,670 | Regan, Curley |
| 38 | 16 April 1966 | Exeter City | A | 0–5 | 4,975 | |
| 39 | 23 April 1966 | Reading | H | 1–1 | 7,800 | Gelson |
| 40 | 26 April 1966 | Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic | H | 1–0 | 5,790 | Regan |
| 41 | 30 April 1966 | Hull City | A | 1–4 | 24,318 | Regan |
| 42 | 7 May 1966 | Mansfield Town | H | 0–3 | 7,970 | |
| 43 | 10 May 1966 | Watford | H | 1–1 | 5,580 | Thomson |
| 44 | 17 May 1966 | Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic | H | 1–0 | 5,130 | Docherty |
| 45 | 21 May 1966 | Peterborough United | A | 0–3 | 3,936 | |
| 46 | 28 May 1966 | Gillingham | H | 0–2 | 4,450 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 1R | 13 November 1965 | Yeovil Town | H | 2–1 | 9,320 | Fielding (2) |
| 2R | 4 December 1965 | Reading | A | 0–5 | 10,582 | |

### Football League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 2R | 22 November 1965 | Workington | A | 0–0 | 3,374 | |
| 2R (replay) | 30 November 1965 | Workington | H | 1–2 | 4,720 | Lawther |
* Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Statto

## Playing squad

    Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1965–66 season.
| Pos. | Name | Date of birth (age) | Signed from | Signed in | Notes |
| Goalkeepers |||||||
| GK | Chic Brodie | (1937-02-22)22 February 1937 (aged 28) | Northampton Town | 1963 | |
| GK | Gordon Phillips | (1946-11-17)17 November 1946 (aged 18) | Hayes | 1963 | |
| Defenders |||||||
| DF | Peter Gelson | (1941-10-18)18 October 1941 (aged 23) | Youth | 1961 | |
| DF | Alan Hawley | (1946-06-07)7 June 1946 (aged 19) | Youth | 1962 | |
| DF | Allan Jones | (1940-01-06)6 January 1940 (aged 25) | Liverpool | 1963 | |
| DF | Hamish MacKenzie | (1945-03-11)11 March 1945 (aged 20) | Dunfermline Athletic | 1964 | |
| DF | George Thomson | (1936-10-19)19 October 1936 (aged 28) | Everton | 1963 | |
| Midfielders |||||||
| HB | Ron Crisp | (1938-09-24)24 September 1938 (aged 26) | Watford | 1965 | |
| HB | Tommy Higginson | (1937-01-06)6 January 1937 (aged 28) | Kilmarnock | 1959 | |
| HB | Hugh McLaughlin | (1943-09-02)2 September 1943 (aged 21) | St Roch's | 1961 | |
| HB | Eddie Reeve | (1947-12-03)3 December 1947 (aged 17) | Youth | 1964 | |
| HB | Mel Scott (c) | (1939-09-26)26 September 1939 (aged 25) | Chelsea | 1963 | |
| HB | Willie Smith | (1943-12-06)6 December 1943 (aged 21) | Celtic | 1963 | |
| Forwards |||||||
| FW | Micky Block | (1940-01-28)28 January 1940 (aged 25) | Chelsea | 1962 | |
| FW | Billy Cobb | (1940-09-29)29 September 1940 (aged 24) | Plymouth Argyle | 1964 | |
| FW | Tom Curley | (1945-06-11)11 June 1945 (aged 20) | Celtic | 1965 | |
| FW | John Docherty | (1940-04-29)29 April 1940 (aged 25) | Sheffield United | 1966 | |
| FW | Brian Etheridge | (1944-03-04)4 March 1944 (aged 21) | Northampton Town | 1966 | |
| FW | Ian Lawther | (1939-10-20)20 October 1939 (aged 25) | Scunthorpe United | 1964 | |
| FW | John Regan | (1944-06-18)18 June 1944 (aged 21) | Shrewsbury Town | 1966 | |
| FW | Bobby Ross | (1942-05-10)10 May 1942 (aged 23) | Shrewsbury Town | 1966 | |
| FW | Barry Thornley | (1948-02-11)11 February 1948 (aged 17) | Gravesend & Northfleet | 1965 | |
| Players who left the club mid-season |||||||
| FW | Jimmy Bloomfield | (1934-02-15)15 February 1934 (aged 31) | Birmingham City | 1964 | Transferred to West Ham United |
| FW | Joe Bonson | (1936-06-09)9 June 1936 (aged 29) | Newport County | 1964 | Transferred to Lincoln City |
| FW | John Fielding | (1939-09-02)2 September 1939 (aged 25) | Southport | 1963 | Transferred to Grimsby Town |
| FW | Mark Lazarus | (1938-12-05)5 December 1938 (aged 26) | Queens Park Rangers | 1964 | Transferred to Queens Park Rangers |
* Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Timeless Bees

## Coaching staff
### Tommy Cavanagh (21 August 1965 – 18 April 1966)

| Name | Role |
| Tommy Cavanagh | Manager |
| Jimmy Sirrel | Trainer |
| Eddie Lyons | Physiotherapist |

### Ian Black (18 April – 2 May 1966)

| Name | Role |
| Ian Black | Caretaker Manager |
| Jimmy Sirrel | Trainer |
| Eddie Lyons | Physiotherapist |

### Billy Gray (3–28 May 1966)

| Name | Role |
| Billy Gray | Manager |
| Jimmy Sirrel | Trainer |
| Eddie Lyons | Physiotherapist |

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

    Substitute appearances in brackets.
| Pos | Nat | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total |
| Pos | Nat | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | | Chic Brodie | 35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 38 | 0 |
| GK | | Gordon Phillips | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| DF | | Peter Gelson | 34 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 2 |
| DF | | Allan Jones | 44 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 48 | 0 |
| DF | | Alan Hawley | 36 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 0 |
| DF | | Hamish MacKenzie | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | | George Thomson | 44 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 47 | 2 |
| HB | | Ron Crisp | 10 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 (1) | 0 |
| HB | | Tommy Higginson | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 1 |
| HB | | Hugh McLaughlin | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 |
| HB | | Eddie Reeve | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| HB | | Mel Scott | 38 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 0 |
| HB | | Willie Smith | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| FW | | Micky Block | 29 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 6 |
| FW | | Jimmy Bloomfield | 2 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | | Joe Bonson | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 1 |
| FW | | Billy Cobb | 27 (2) | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 31 (2) | 7 |
| FW | | Tom Curley | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 |
| FW | | John Docherty | 26 | 7 | — | — | — | — | 26 | 7 |
| FW | | Brian Etheridge | 16 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 16 | 2 |
| FW | | John Fielding | 9 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 3 |
| FW | | Ian Lawther | 37 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 41 | 11 |
| FW | | Mark Lazarus | 9 | 2 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| FW | | John Regan | 12 | 5 | — | — | — | — | 12 | 5 |
| FW | | Bobby Ross | 17 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 17 | 0 |
| FW | | Barry Thornley | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### Goalscorers

| Pos. | Nat | Player | FL3 | FAC | FLC | Total |
| FW | | Ian Lawther | 10 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| FW | | Billy Cobb | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| FW | | John Docherty | 7 | — | — | 7 |
| FW | | Micky Block | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| FW | | John Regan | 5 | — | — | 5 |
| FW | | John Fielding | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| FW | | Brian Etheridge | 2 | — | — | 2 |
| FW | | Mark Lazarus | 2 | — | 0 | 2 |
| FW | | Tom Curley | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| HB | | Peter Gelson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| DF | | George Thomson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| FW | | Joe Bonson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| HB | | Tommy Higginson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 48 | 2 | 1 | 51 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### 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 % |
| Tommy Cavanagh | | 22 August 1964 | 16 April 1966 | 42 | 9 | 11 | 22 | 021.43 | 38 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 021.05 |
| Ian Black (caretaker) | | 23 April 1966 | 30 April 1966 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 033.33 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 033.33 |
| Billy Gray | | 7 May 1966 | 28 May 1966 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 020.00 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 020.00 |

### Summary

| Games played | 50 (46 Third Division, 2 FA Cup, 2 League Cup) |
| Games won | 11 (10 Third Division, 1 FA Cup, 0 League Cup) |
| Games drawn | 13 (12 Third Division, 0 FA Cup, 1 League Cup) |
| Games lost | 26 (24 Third Division, 1 FA Cup, 1 League Cup) |
| Goals scored | 51 (48 Third Division, 2 FA Cup, 1 League Cup) |
| Goals conceded | 77 (69 Third Division, 6 FA Cup, 2 League Cup) |
| Clean sheets | 10 (9 Third Division, 0 FA Cup, 1 League Cup) |
| Biggest league win | 6–1 versus Queens Park Rangers, 21 August 1965 |
| Worst league defeat | 5–0 on two occasions |
| Most appearances | 48, Allan Jones (44 Third Division, 2 FA Cup, 2 League Cup) |
| Top scorer (league) | 10, Ian Lawther |
| Top scorer (all competitions) | 11, Ian Lawther |

## Transfers & loans

Players transferred in :
| Date | Pos. | Name | Previous Club | Fee | Ref. |
| May 1965 | DF | Michael Ogburn | Portsmouth | n/a | |
| August 1965 | HB | Ron Crisp | Watford | £2,000 | |
| August 1965 | FW | Tom Curley | Celtic | n/a | |
| October 1965 | FW | Barry Thornley | Gravesend & Northfleet | £2,000 | |
| December 1965 | FW | John Docherty | Sheffield United | n/a | |
| 1965 | HB | Keith Hooker | n/a | n/a | |
| February 1966 | FW | Brian Etheridge | Northampton Town | £8,000 | |
| March 1966 | FW | John Regan | Shrewsbury Town | £4,250 | |
| March 1966 | FW | Bobby Ross | Shrewsbury Town | £4,250 | |
| Players transferred out ||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | Subsequent club | Fee | Ref. |
| August 1965 | FW | Dai Ward | Worcester City | £2,000 | |
| October 1965 | FW | Jimmy Bloomfield | West Ham United | £6,500 | |
| 4 November 1965 | FW | Mark Lazarus | Queens Park Rangers | £6,000 | |
| December 1965 | FW | John Fielding | Grimsby Town | n/a | |
| January 1966 | FW | Joe Bonson | Lincoln City | n/a | |
| Players released ||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | Subsequent club | Join date | Ref. |
| May 1966 | FW | Joe Gadston | Corby Town | 1966 | |
| May 1966 | HB | Hugh McLaughlin | Gravesend & Northfleet | 1966 | |
| May 1966 | HB | Willie Smith | Hastings United | August 1966 | |
| May 1966 | FW | Tim Soutar | Ashford Town (Kent) | 1966 | |