Last week, in my role as arts reporter for this esteemed newspaper, I spent a day touring the First World War battlefields of northern France.

This press jolly was organised to promote an upcoming production of Journey’s End that is heading to Richmond Theatre in March.

Without wishing to belittle the honour and sacrifice of those who fought and died in the Great War, I must admit that, as our tour guide relayed tales of young men and their futile struggles across muddy fields, my mind kept on floating back across The English Channel to another, much smaller, patch of churned up turf in TW8, that has seen its fair share of senseless marauding over the past few months.

A crueller Brentford supporter than myself might take this analogy one step further and make a comment about “out of touch generals” or “failures of leadership”, but I’m not spiteful enough to do something like that (Aren’t you? - Ed).

What I can’t ignore is that, at present, Brentford are absolutely appalling. Throughout the season we have been painfully inconsistent, with the emphasis firmly placed on the ‘in’.

As a Bees supporter, it goes without saying that I’m an optimist and I have done my best to stay positive throughout the last few months, but the alarm bells are now ringing so loudly that they are impossible to dismiss.

For every dazzling cup win, there has been at least two turgid displays in the league and it is only the poor standard of League One that has allowed us to remain safely in mid-table for most of the season.

Attendances at Griffin Park have been low, the atmosphere is dreadful and it’s no big surprise when you consider how rubbish Brentford have been at home so far this term.

The continual deployment of hoof-ball tactics is driving myself and many others to distraction.

With two games against relegation zone occupants Yeovil Town and Dagenham & Redbridge coming up, the chance is there to turn things around.

As Elvis once warbled: “It’s now or never.”

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Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here