# 1952–53 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1952–53 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Second Division. A forgettable season, during which Tommy Lawton was appointed as the club's player-manager, ended with a 17th-place finish.

## Season summary

Brentford's 1952–53 pre-season preparations were thrown into disarray by the departure of secretary-manager Jackie Gibbons in August 1952. In his letter of resignation, Gibbons wrote of having failed to see "eye to eye" with the Brentford board. Long-serving assistant manager Jimmy Bain took over as caretaker until a permanent appointment could be made. 34-year-old forward Les Smith was the club's only signing and returned to Griffin Park after six years with Aston Villa. Half backs Bill Slater and forwards Johnny Paton and Jimmy Bowie were the only departures of note.
Brentford had a poor start to the Second Division season and won just five of the opening 20 matches. Four defeats and no wins in a five-match spell in September 1952 led caretaker Bain to break up his settled XI and experiment with moving players into different positions. Want-away captain Ron Greenwood left for First Division club Chelsea in October 1952 and forward Jimmy D'Arcy arrived in part-exchange. The tide began to turn after back to back victories over Barnsley on Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Forward Tommy Lawton was announced as Brentford's player-manager on 2 January 1953 and Jimmy Bain reverted to his role as assistant. Lawton was unbeaten in 9 of his first 12 matches, but the team lost confidence after a pair of heavy defeats in March and slumped to a 17th-place finish.

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts |
| 15 | Lincoln City | 42 | 11 | 17 | 14 | 64 | 71 | 0.901 | 39 |
| 16 | Everton | 42 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 71 | 75 | 0.947 | 38 |
| 17 | Brentford | 42 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 59 | 76 | 0.776 | 37 |
| 18 | Hull City | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 57 | 69 | 0.826 | 36 |
| 19 | Notts County | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 60 | 88 | 0.682 | 36 |

## Results

    Brentford's goal tally listed first.

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League Second Division

| No. | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 1 | 23 August 1952 | Lincoln City | H | 1–0 | 27,787 | Goodwin |
| 2 | 27 August 1952 | Huddersfield Town | A | 0–0 | 21,358 | |
| 3 | 30 August 1952 | Hull City | A | 2–2 | 35,993 | Dare, Monk (pen) |
| 4 | 3 September 1952 | Huddersfield Town | H | 1–3 | 21,733 | Lawton |
| 5 | 6 September 1952 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 3–2 | 21,904 | Sperrin, Lawton, Monk (pen) |
| 6 | 8 September 1952 | Sheffield United | A | 2–3 | 17,397 | Goodwin, Ledgerton |
| 7 | 13 September 1952 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–3 | 26,923 | |
| 8 | 17 September 1952 | Sheffield United | H | 0–0 | 11,707 | |
| 9 | 20 September 1952 | Everton | H | 2–4 | 21,042 | Lawton, Harper |
| 10 | 27 September 1952 | Bury | A | 0–3 | 12,398 | |
| 11 | 4 October 1952 | Doncaster Rovers | A | 2–0 | 13,465 | Monk, Goodwin |
| 12 | 11 October 1952 | Southampton | H | 3–0 | 17,225 | Lawton, Monk (pen), Smith |
| 13 | 18 October 1952 | Notts County | A | 0–4 | 26,033 | |
| 14 | 25 October 1952 | Leicester City | H | 4–2 | 21,655 | Goodwin, Lawton (2), Dare |
| 15 | 1 November 1952 | West Ham United | A | 1–3 | 23,263 | D'Arcy |
| 16 | 8 November 1952 | Fulham | H | 2–2 | 29,241 | D'Arcy, Monk (pen) |
| 17 | 15 November 1952 | Rotherham United | A | 1–4 | 15,427 | Monk (pen) |
| 18 | 22 November 1952 | Plymouth Argyle | H | 1–2 | 17,192 | Lawton |
| 19 | 29 November 1952 | Leeds United | A | 2–3 | 16,077 | Dare, Ledgerton |
| 20 | 13 December 1952 | Birmingham City | A | 1–3 | 9,963 | Lawton |
| 21 | 20 December 1952 | Lincoln City | A | 0–0 | 11,953 | |
| 22 | 25 December 1952 | Barnsley | H | 4–0 | 15,976 | Sperrin, Dare, Lawton (2) |
| 23 | 26 December 1952 | Barnsley | A | 2–0 | 13,725 | McNeil (og), Ledgerton |
| 24 | 3 January 1953 | Hull City | H | 1–0 | 16,035 | D'Arcy |
| 25 | 17 January 1953 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 0–3 | 21,487 | |
| 26 | 24 January 1953 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–1 | 15,110 | Ledgerton |
| 27 | 7 February 1953 | Everton | A | 0–5 | 36,431 | |
| 28 | 14 February 1953 | Bury | H | 2–2 | 9,387 | Sperrin, Bloomfield |
| 29 | 21 February 1953 | Doncaster Rovers | H | 1–0 | 16,716 | Lawton |
| 30 | 28 February 1953 | Southampton | A | 2–0 | 20,327 | Ellerington (og), Dare |
| 31 | 7 March 1953 | Notts County | H | 5–0 | 16,147 | Monk (pen), Harper, Dare, Lawton (2) |
| 32 | 14 March 1953 | Leicester City | A | 3–2 | 21,307 | Morrad, Latimer |
| 33 | 21 March 1953 | West Ham United | H | 1–4 | 18,117 | Latimer |
| 34 | 28 March 1953 | Fulham | A | 0–5 | 25,550 | |
| 35 | 3 April 1953 | Swansea Town | H | 0–0 | 17,876 | |
| 36 | 4 April 1953 | Rotherham United | H | 1–1 | 14,411 | Bloomfield |
| 37 | 6 April 1953 | Swansea Town | A | 2–3 | 21,695 | Ledgerton, Godwin |
| 38 | 11 April 1953 | Plymouth Argyle | A | 0–1 | 19,955 | |
| 39 | 18 April 1953 | Leeds United | H | 3–3 | 12,783 | Ledgerton, Coote, Lawton |
| 40 | 22 April 1953 | Luton Town | H | 1–1 | 16,347 | Ledgerton |
| 41 | 25 April 1953 | Luton Town | A | 1–0 | 15,826 | Dare |
| 42 | 1 May 1953 | Birmingham City | H | 1–2 | 8,565 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorer(s) |
| 3R | 10 January 1953 | Leeds United | H | 2–1 | 27,000 | Ledgerton, Lawton |
| 4R | 31 January 1953 | Aston Villa | A | 0–0 | 40,625 | |
| 4R (replay) | 4 February 1953 | Aston Villa | H | 1–2 | 21,735 | Lawton |
* Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Statto, 11v11

## Playing squad

    Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1952–53 season.
| Pos. | Name | Nat. | Date of birth (age) | Signed from | Signed in | Notes |
| Goalkeepers | Goalkeepers | Goalkeepers | Goalkeepers | Goalkeepers | Goalkeepers | |
| GK | Alf Jefferies | | (1922-02-09)9 February 1922 (aged 30) | Oxford City | 1945 | |
| GK | Reg Newton | | (1926-06-30)30 June 1926 (aged 26) | Leyton Orient | 1949 | |
| Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | Defenders | |
| DF | Ken Horne | | (1926-06-25)25 June 1926 (aged 26) | Blackpool | 1950 | |
| DF | Tecwyn Jones | | (1930-01-03)3 January 1930 (aged 22) | Holywell Town | 1950 | |
| DF | Fred Monk | | (1920-10-09)9 October 1920 (aged 31) | Guildford City | 1948 | |
| DF | Roddy Munro | | (1920-07-27)27 July 1920 (aged 32) | Rangers | 1946 | |
| Midfielders | Midfielders | Midfielders | Midfielders | Midfielders | Midfielders | |
| HB | Wally Bragg | | (1929-07-08)8 July 1929 (aged 23) | Twickenham Celtic | 1946 | |
| HB | George Bristow | | (1933-06-25)25 June 1933 (aged 19) | Youth | 1950 | |
| HB | Ken Coote | | (1928-05-19)19 May 1928 (aged 24) | Wembley | 1949 | |
| HB | Ian Dargie | | (1931-10-03)3 October 1931 (aged 20) | Tonbridge | 1952 | |
| HB | Tony Harper | | (1925-05-26)26 May 1925 (aged 27) | Headington United | 1948 | |
| HB | Frank Latimer | | (1923-10-03)3 October 1923 (aged 28) | Snowdown Colliery Welfare | 1945 | |
| Forwards | Forwards | Forwards | Forwards | Forwards | Forwards | |
| FW | Jimmy Bloomfield | | (1934-02-15)15 February 1934 (aged 18) | Hayes | 1952 | |
| FW | Micky Bull | | (1930-04-03)3 April 1930 (aged 22) | Youth | 1948 | |
| FW | Jimmy D'Arcy | | (1921-12-14)14 December 1921 (aged 30) | Chelsea | 1952 | |
| FW | Billy Dare | | (1927-02-14)14 February 1927 (aged 25) | Hendon | 1948 | |
| FW | Verdi Godwin | | (1926-02-11)11 February 1926 (aged 26) | Grimsby Town | 1952 | |
| FW | Jackie Goodwin | | (1920-09-29)29 September 1920 (aged 31) | Birmingham City | 1949 | |
| FW | Tommy Lawton | | (1919-10-06)6 October 1919 (aged 32) | Notts County | 1952 | |
| FW | Terry Ledgerton | | (1930-10-07)7 October 1930 (aged 21) | Huyton | 1950 | |
| FW | Frank Morrad | | (1920-02-28)28 February 1920 (aged 32) | Brighton & Hove Albion | 1951 | |
| FW | Les Smith | | (1918-03-13)13 March 1918 (aged 34) | Aston Villa | 1952 | |
| FW | Billy Sperrin | | (1922-04-09)9 April 1922 (aged 30) | Guildford City | 1949 | |
| Players who left the club mid-season |||||||
| HB | Ron Greenwood (c) | | (1921-11-11)11 November 1921 (aged 30) | Bradford Park Avenue | 1949 | Transferred to Chelsea |
* Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Timeless Bees

## Coaching staff
### Jimmy Bain (23 August 1952 – 2 January 1953)

| Name | Role |
| Jimmy Bain | Caretaker Manager |
| David Richards | Trainer |
| Jack Cartmell | Assistant trainer |

### Tommy Lawton (2 January 1953 – 1 May 1953)

| Name | Role |
| Tommy Lawton | Player-Manager |
| Jimmy Bain | Assistant manager |
| David Richards | Trainer |
| Jack Cartmell | Assistant trainer |

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

| Pos | Nat | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | Total | Total |
| Pos | Nat | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | | Alf Jefferies | 35 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 0 |
| GK | | Reg Newton | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| DF | | Ken Horne | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| DF | | Tecwyn Jones | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| DF | | Fred Monk | 40 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 43 | 7 |
| DF | | Roddy Munro | 34 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 37 | 0 |
| HB | | Wally Bragg | 38 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 41 | 0 |
| HB | | George Bristow | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| HB | | Ken Coote | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 |
| HB | | Ian Dargie | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| HB | | Ron Greenwood | 9 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 |
| HB | | Tony Harper | 36 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 39 | 3 |
| HB | | Frank Latimer | 30 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 33 | 3 |
| FW | | Jimmy Bloomfield | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 |
| FW | | Micky Bull | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | | Jimmy D'Arcy | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 |
| FW | | Billy Dare | 33 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 36 | 8 |
| FW | | Verdi Godwin | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| FW | | Jackie Goodwin | 24 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 27 | 4 |
| FW | | Tommy Lawton | 34 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 37 | 15 |
| FW | | Terry Ledgerton | 28 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 31 | 8 |
| FW | | Frank Morrad | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| FW | | Les Smith | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| FW | | Billy Sperrin | 12 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 15 | 3 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### Goalscorers

| Pos. | Nat | Player | FL2 | FAC | Total |
| FW | | Tommy Lawton | 13 | 2 | 15 |
| FW | | Billy Dare | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| FW | | Terry Ledgerton | 7 | 1 | 8 |
| DF | | Fred Monk | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| FW | | Jackie Goodwin | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| FW | | Jimmy D'Arcy | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| HB | | Tony Harper | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| HB | | Frank Latimer | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| FW | | Billy Sperrin | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| FW | | Jimmy Bloomfield | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| HB | | Ken Coote | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Verdi Godwin | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Frank Morrad | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| FW | | Les Smith | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Opponents | Opponents | Opponents | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | Total | Total | 59 | 3 | 62 |
* Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
* Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

### International caps

| Pos. | Nat | Player | Caps | Goals | Ref |
| FW | | Jimmy D'Arcy | 4 | 1 | |

### 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 % |
| Jimmy Bain | | 23 August 1952 | 26 December 1952 | 23 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 030.43 | 23 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 030.43 |
| Tommy Lawton | | 3 January 1952 | 1 May 1953 | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 031.82 | 19 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 031.58 |

### Summary

| Games played | 45 (42 Second Division, 3 FA Cup) |
| Games won | 13 (13 Second Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Games drawn | 12 (11 Second Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Games lost | 19 (18 Second Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Goals scored | 62 (59 Second Division, 3 FA Cup) |
| Goals conceded | 79 (76 Second Division, 3 FA Cup) |
| Clean sheets | 15 (14 Second Division, 1 FA Cup) |
| Biggest league win | 5–0 versus Notts County, 7 March 1953 |
| Worst league defeat | 5–0 on two occasions |
| Most appearances | 43, Fred Monk (43 Second Division, 3 FA Cup) |
| Top scorer (league) | 13, Tommy Lawton |
| Top scorer (all competitions) | 15, Tommy Lawton |

## Transfers & loans

Players transferred in :
| Date | Pos. | Name | Previous Club | Fee | Ref. |
| June 1952 | FW | Les Smith | Aston Villa | n/a | |
| October 1952 | FW | Bert Allum | Hereford United | n/a | |
| October 1952 | HB | Jimmy Bloomfield | Hayes | n/a | |
| October 1952 | FW | Jimmy D'Arcy | Chelsea | Part-exchange | |
| November 1952 | FW | Vernon Avis | Unattached | n/a | |
| November 1952 | FW | John Pearson | Chase of Chertsey | n/a | |
| March 1953 | HB | Leonard Geard | Fulham | n/a | |
| Players transferred out ||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | Subsequent club | Fee | Ref. |
| July 1952 | FW | Jimmy Bowie | Watford | n/a | |
| July 1952 | FW | Johnny Paton | Watford | n/a | |
| August 1952 | DF | Wally Quinton | Shrewsbury Town | n/a | |
| August 1952 | HB | Bill Slater | Wolverhampton Wanderers | Amateur | |
| October 1952 | HB | Ron Greenwood | Chelsea | Part-exchange | |
| Players released ||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | Subsequent club | Join date | Ref. |
| May 1953 | DF | Frank Morrad | Bedford Town | n/a | |
| May 1953 | DF | Roddy Munro | Cambridge City | n/a | |