# 1908–09 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1908–09 English football season, Brentford competed in the Southern League First Division. A disastrous season ended with a bottom-place finish, but the club was spared relegation after the First Division was expanded in June 1909.

## Season summary

After encountering severe financial problems during the 1907–08 season, the Brentford committee was forced to dispense with the majority of the first team squad in May 1908, due to many of the players being unwilling to accept lower wages for the 1908–09 season. Top-scorer Adam Bowman had been sold in April and he was followed out of Griffin Park by Tosher Underwood, Jock Watson, Jock Hamilton, Tom McAllister, George Parsonage, Fred Corbett, Jimmy Tomlinson, Andy Clark, John Montgomery, Vince Hayes and Patsy Hendren, while Oakey Field (who had returned in November 1907), Charlie Williams and Jimmy Jay elected to retire. Fred Halliday was appointed Brentford manager on 24 June and began assembling an almost entirely new squad, which eventually reduced the wage bill by 20%, to £2,565 across the entire season (equivalent to £337,700 in 2024).
Brentford endured a forgettable Southern League First Division season, matching the 33 points won during the previous season, but instead finishing five places lower at the bottom of the table. The return of Jimmy Jay in October helped solidify the back lines, which up to that point were leaking goals. Forward Alex McCulloch, signed during the 1908 off-season, caught the eye of manager Halliday's former club Bradford Park Avenue and departed for a £350 fee in November, with Geordie Reid arriving at Griffin Park in part-exchange. Reid would top-score for the Bees during the season with 18 goals. There was some cheer late in the season, with the Bees winning the Southern Professional Charity Cup.
Brentford's bottom-place finish was initially no cause for concern, with plans afoot for 16 Southern League clubs, plus another two from a list of six (which included Brentford), to form a Third Division of the Football League. The chance fell through when the Football League First and Second Division clubs voted against the formation of a Third Division, but Brentford were saved from relegation when the Southern League opted to expand to 22 clubs in June 1909, with Croydon Common being promoted from the Second Division and thus preserving Brentford's First Division status.

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts |
| 17 | West Ham United | 40 | 16 | 4 | 20 | 56 | 60 | 0.933 | 36 |
| 18 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 40 | 14 | 7 | 19 | 60 | 61 | 0.984 | 35 |
| 19 | Norwich City | 40 | 12 | 11 | 17 | 59 | 75 | 0.787 | 35 |
| 20 | Coventry City | 40 | 15 | 4 | 21 | 64 | 91 | 0.703 | 34 |
| 21 | Brentford | 40 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 59 | 74 | 0.797 | 33 |

## Results

    Brentford's goal tally listed first.

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Southern League First Division

| No. | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorer(s) |
| 1 | 2 September 1908 | Reading | A | 2–2 | Sugden (2) |
| 2 | 5 September 1908 | Southampton | H | 2–2 | McCulloch, Glen |
| 3 | 12 September 1908 | Leyton | A | 0–2 | |
| 4 | 19 September 1908 | West Ham United | H | 1–0 | McCulloch |
| 5 | 26 September 1908 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 0–4 | |
| 6 | 28 September 1908 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 0–0 | |
| 7 | 3 October 1908 | Crystal Palace | H | 1–3 | Connelly |
| 8 | 10 October 1908 | Plymouth Argyle | A | 0–2 | |
| 9 | 17 October 1908 | Luton Town | A | 1–3 | Ryalls |
| 10 | 24 October 1908 | Swindon Town | H | 1–0 | McCulloch |
| 11 | 31 October 1908 | Portsmouth | A | 3–2 | Glen, Connelly, Jay |
| 12 | 7 November 1908 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 0–3 | |
| 13 | 14 November 1908 | Northampton Town | A | 2–3 | Reid, Glen |
| 14 | 16 November 1908 | Exeter City | H | 0–2 | |
| 15 | 21 November 1908 | New Brompton | H | 1–1 | Connelly |
| 16 | 23 November 1908 | Southend United | H | 4–1 | Reid, Connelly (2), Sugden |
| 17 | 28 November 1908 | Millwall | A | 1–2 | Reid |
| 18 | 12 December 1908 | Coventry City | A | 2–1 | Buxton, Badger |
| 19 | 19 December 1908 | Bristol Rovers | H | 2–2 | Reid, Connelly |
| 20 | 25 December 1908 | Watford | H | 3–1 | Connelly, Sugden, Reid |
| 21 | 26 December 1908 | Norwich City | A | 1–6 | Buxton |
| 22 | 28 December 1908 | Reading | H | 2–3 | Buxton, Reid |
| 23 | 2 January 1909 | Southampton | A | 0–1 | |
| 24 | 9 January 1909 | Leyton | H | 0–0 | |
| 25 | 23 January 1909 | West Ham United | A | 0–3 | |
| 26 | 30 January 1909 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 4–0 | Reid (4) |
| 27 | 13 February 1909 | Plymouth Argyle | H | 1–0 | Reid |
| 28 | 20 February 1909 | Luton Town | H | 2–2 | Reid, Sugden |
| 29 | 27 February 1909 | Swindon Town | A | 1–2 | McKenzie |
| 30 | 13 March 1909 | Exeter City | A | 2–1 | Reid, Sugden |
| 31 | 20 March 1909 | Northampton Town | H | 3–1 | Connelly (2), Ramsden (pen) |
| 32 | 27 March 1909 | New Brompton | A | 1–1 | Sugden |
| 33 | 29 March 1909 | Portsmouth | H | 1–2 | Reid |
| 34 | 31 March 1909 | Crystal Palace | A | 1–3 | Nicholson |
| 35 | 3 April 1909 | Millwall | H | 4–2 | McIver (2, 2 pen), Nicholson, Connelly |
| 36 | 9 April 1909 | Norwich City | H | 3–1 | Sugden, Connelly, Buxton |
| 37 | 10 April 1909 | Southend United | A | 0–1 | |
| 38 | 12 April 1909 | Watford | A | 0–2 | |
| 39 | 17 April 1909 | Coventry City | H | 5–2 | Reid (2), Nicholson, Sugden, Connelly |
| 40 | 24 April 1909 | Bristol Rovers | A | 2–3 | Reid (2) |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorer |
| 1R | 16 January 1909 | Gainsborough Trinity | H | 2–0 | Richards (2) |
| 2R | 6 February 1909 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–1 | |
* Source: 100 Years of Brentford

## Playing squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | GK | ENG | Willie McIver |
| — | DF | ENG | Dave Ewing |
| — | DF | ENG | Ernest Ramsden |
| — | DF | ENG | Dusty Rhodes (c) |
| — | MF | ENG | Bert Badger |
| — | MF | SCO | John Gordon |
| — | MF | ENG | Joe Hisbent |
| — | MF | ENG | Jimmy Jay |
| — | MF | ENG | George Podmore |
| — | MF | ENG | Phil Richards |
| — | FW | ENG | Steve Buxton |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | FW | ENG | Fred Connelly |
| — | FW | SCO | Alex Glen |
| — | FW | SCO | Gladstone Hamilton |
| — | FW | SCO | William Jaffray |
| — | FW | SCO | Ronald McKenzie |
| — | FW | ENG | Arthur Nicholson |
| — | FW | SCO | Geordie Reid |
| — | FW | ENG | Joe Ryalls |
| — | FW | ENG | Sidney Sugden |
| — | FW | ENG | Lindsay Syrad |

### Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | FW | SCO | Alex McCulloch (to Bradford Park Avenue) |
* Source: 100 Years of Brentford

## Coaching staff

| Name | Role |
| Fred Halliday | Secretary Manager |
| Tom Cowper | Trainer |

## Statistics
### Goalscorers

| Pos. | Nat | Player | SL1 | FAC | Total |
| FW | | Geordie Reid | 18 | 0 | 18 |
| FW | | Fred Connelly | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| FW | | Sidney Sugden | 9 | 0 | 9 |
| FW | | Steve Buxton | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| FW | | Alex Glen | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| FW | | Alex McCulloch | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| FW | | Arthur Nicholson | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| GK | | Willie McIver | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| HB | | Phil Richards | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| HB | | Bert Badger | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| HB | | Jimmy Jay | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Ronald McKenzie | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| DF | | Ernest Ramsden | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Joe Ryalls | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 59 | 2 | 61 |
* 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 % |
| Fred Halliday | | 2 September 1908 | 24 April 1909 | 42 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 033.33 | 40 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 032.50 |

### Summary

| Games played | 42 (40 Southern League First Division, 2 FA Cup) |
| Games won | 14 (13 Southern League First Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Games drawn | 7 (7 Southern League First Division, 0 FA Cup) |
| Games lost | 21 (20 Southern League First Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Goals scored | 61 (59 Southern League First Division, 2 FA Cup) |
| Goals conceded | 75 (74 Southern League First Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Clean sheets | 7 (6 Southern League First Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Biggest league win | 4–0 versus Brighton & Hove Albion, 30 January 1909 |
| Worst league defeat | 6–1 versus Norwich City, 26 December 1908 |
| Most appearances | 42, Willie McIver, Joe Ryalls (40 Southern League First Division, 2 FA Cup) |
| Top scorer (league) | 18, Geordie Reid |
| Top scorer (all competitions) | 18, Geordie Reid |