BRENTFORD

Boom. The sound of a 90th-minute promotion-sealing penalty hitting the crossbar, not the back of the net. Seconds later, opponents Doncaster raced down the other end, scored the winner and secured promotion to the Championship themselves. And Brentford lost in the play-offs.

To most people, Marcello Trotta’s missed spot-kick in 2013 is our go-to image of the decade. To those of us who support the club, it’s just another thing that sums up ‘doing a Brentford’.

Yet if our historical form has been heartbreaking failure punctuated by the most miniscule of good times, the past 10 years have seen a reversal of fortunes. The decade kicked off with supporter Matthew Benham agreeing to invest £1m a year. Shortly after that, he acquired a majority shareholding. From there, things exploded.

League One runners-up in 2013-14. Fifth place in the Championship a year later. The academy we had fought so hard for, disbanded. Manager Mark Warburton leaving. A transfer strategy based around statistical analysis. It all saw Benham labelled a lunatic, but it resulted in unprecedented high-profit sales to the upper echelons of English football. Ezri Konsa, John Egan, James Tarkowski, Andre Gray, Chris Mepham... they and many more were replaced by hidden gems from abroad, including Jota, Neal Maupay and Said Benrahma.

Despite yearly sales, the team keep growing. The past five campaigns have witnessed five top-half finishes in the Championship, following five top-half finishes in League One. Brentford end this decade preparing to bid farewell to Griffin Park and hello to a purpose-built stadium up the road. Given the club’s progress under Benham, the first game there could be in the Premier League.

Penalty? What penalty?

Nick Bruzon