Fletcher leads sting operation on Bees
IT WAS groundhog day for Brentford as the Bees once again suffered agony in the Potteries.
In July the wheels came off with a damaging defeat to Michael O’Neill’s side which ultimately condemned them to play-off heartbreak.
This time around the wheels are barely turning.
Boss Thomas Frank said: “We lost on the day to a better team. We started off very slowly, played with no initiative, no tempo and had too many touches.
“In the second half we got into the game but their third goal gave us a mountain to climb.”
Meanwhile, Stoke go from strength and they have now leapfrogged the stingless Bees.
O’Neill said: “Three-nil up we made it more difficult than was necessary but things are looking better for us.
“We focused on having a good start to the season and the players have responded well.”
The Potters took a ninth-minute lead when James McClean made a surging run to the edge of the Brentford area and neatly found Tyrese Campbell whose cross was headed in by Steven Fletcher at the far post.
And in the 35th minute McClean had far too much time after a short pass from Campbell and he drilled home from an acute angle helped by a Charlie Goode deflection.
Campbell made it 3-0 in the 59th minute when he fired low past David Raya.
Brentford substitute Marcus Forss caused some late anxiety with two opportunist goals. STOKE: Davies 6; Collins 7, Souttar 7, Chester 7; Smith 7, Thompson 7, Mikel
7, McClean 8, Brown 7 (Oakley-Boothe
87th); Fletcher 7 (Vokes 81st), Campbell 8 (Tymon (72nd) 6)
BRENTFORD: Raya 6; Goode 5, Pinnock 5, Sorensen 5 (Jensen (46th) 6); Dalsgaard 5, Janelt 6 (Forss (63rd) 6), Dasilva 7, Henry
6; Ghoddos 5 (Mbeumo (46th) 6), Canos
7, Toney 5
Tyrese Campbell K Stroud