Tuesday 26th October 2010 won't really be remembered for anything in particular to most football fans. For Brentford fans, it could have been the most special day in their history. Alas, it was not to be.
A friend of mine asked me if I was gutted with the result coming from the Carling Cup last 16 game between Birmingham City and Brentford. I simply replied "not really". For obvious reasons, I had no need to be upset. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little deflated.
As I sat at home keeping an eye on my iPhone's Sky Sports Football Centre app, I did get a real shot of adrenaline when I saw that Sammy Wood had powered home a 15 yard volley past home goalkeeper Maik Taylor of previous Fulham fame. Then came the sweaty palms. The nervous twitches and constant staring at my phone caused my fiancée to give me a concerned stare down for much of the evening. As the ticker ran closer to the 90 minute mark, I actually began envisioning my front room celebrations, of which would probably fall on deaf ears as my future wife doesn't follow football in the slightest. That was cut short when Kevin Phillips broke Brentford hearts in the second minute of injury time to seal extra time, and ultimately, the fate of the tie.
I figured that during the 30 minutes that followed, if we could hold out, there would be a fair chance of us getting through the penalty shootout, much like we did against Everton, but again the heroic nature of Birmingham's Maik Taylor lead them to victory 4-3.
Bee's fans should be very proud of the teams cup run this year. It may be seen as the worthless cup to many of the countries top Premier League teams, but for the little people in the lower leagues, it is a great way to gain some national exposure, and for a club like Brentford, it was exactly what we needed. Andy Scott and his men should be extremely proud of their run this year, and to the naysayers who called for Scott's axe a mere four games ago, this is all the proof you need to show you that Andy Scott is the right man to take Brentford forward.
