1955–56 Brentford F.C. season

1955–56 season of Brentford F.C.

Brentford 1955–56 football season

Brentford

1955–56 season

Chairman

Frank Davis

Manager

Stadium

Top goalscorer

League: Towers (21)
All: Towers (22)

Highest home attendance

17,847

Lowest home attendance

5,291

Average home league attendance

10,302

Home colours

← 1954–55 1956–57 →

During the 1955–56 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Third Division South. A promising 6th-place finish was achieved with a squad mainly drawn from the club's youth system.

Season summary

After finishing the previous season strongly, Brentford went into the 1955–56 Third Division South season full of optimism. Youth products Jim Towers and Dennis Heath had established themselves in the first team, while George Francis and Gerry Cakebread had also made their debuts. Full backs Alan Bassham, George Lowden and half backs Wally Bragg and George Bristow also made up the ranks of home-grown players in the first team squad and forward John Pearson was another to graduate from the youth team during the 1955–56 season. Chelsea full back Sid Tickridge was manager Bill Dodgin Sr.'s only major signing of the off-season and he replaced Frank Latimer as club captain.

Despite winning more games than they had lost, Brentford hovered in mid-table during the opening three months of the season. Forward Jeff Taylor led the attack and scored 11 goals in as many matches during a five-week period in September and October 1955. Buoyed by four goals in five league matches by Wendell Morgan and news from the boardroom that a £9,000 profit had been made on the year ending in May 1955 (equivalent to £298,300 in 2024), the Bees moved as high as 8th-place in early December, before losing form again later in the month.

Victory over Exeter City on 4 February 1956 was the first win of a strong run which lasted for the remainder of the season and resulted in a 6th-place finish, 11 points behind the top-three clubs. During the season, 22-goal forward Jim Towers and goalkeeper Gerry Cakebread established themselves as two of the best players in the Third Division South. After nearly 27 years as a player, assistant manager and caretaker manager at Griffin Park, long-serving Jimmy Bain retired in May 1956. He received a Long Service Medal from the Football League in recognition and was awarded a testimonial match to be played in October 1956.

Brentford's 4–0 defeat at the hands of Millwall on 5 September 1955 ended an 11-match unbeaten run in League London derbies, a club record which stretched back to February 1954. The record was equalled in August 2023.

League table

Main article: 1955–56 Football League Third Division South

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GAv	Pts
4	Southend United	46	21	11	14	88	80	1.100	53
5	Torquay United	46	20	12	14	86	63	1.365	52
6	Brentford	46	19	14	13	69	66	1.045	52
7	Norwich City	46	19	13	14	86	82	1.049	51
8	Coventry City	46	20	9	17	73	60	1.217	49

Source:

Results

Brentford's goal tally listed first.

Legend

Win

Draw

Loss

Football League Third Division South

No.	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorer(s)
1	20 August 1955	Gillingham	H	1–4	12,247	Towers (pen)
2	22 August 1955	Queens Park Rangers	A	1–1	11,688	Stobbart
3	27 August 1955	Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic	A	0–0	10,451
4	30 August 1955	Queens Park Rangers	H	2–0	12,947	Towers, Taylor
5	3 September 1955	Norwich City	H	1–2	12,565	Dudley
6	5 September 1955	Millwall	A	0–4	6,911
7	10 September 1955	Colchester United	A	3–0	7,843	Towers (2), Taylor
8	12 September 1955	Millwall	H	2–2	7,597	Taylor, Stobbart
9	17 September 1955	Leyton Orient	H	1–0	17,847	Taylor
10	19 September 1955	Watford	H	0–0	6,864
11	24 September 1955	Exeter City	A	3–2	9,454	Taylor (3)
12	26 September 1955	Coventry City	A	1–2	12,584	Taylor
13	1 October 1955	Southend United	H	2–1	14,329	Taylor, Towers
14	8 October 1955	Aldershot	A	1–4	7,395	Towers
15	15 October 1955	Crystal Palace	H	3–0	13,636	Taylor (2), Towers
16	22 October 1955	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	0–3	12,771
17	29 October 1955	Southampton	H	2–1	12,300	Morgan, Rainford
18	5 November 1955	Shrewsbury Town	A	1–1	10,551	Morgan
19	12 November 1955	Ipswich Town	H	3–2	14,795	Francis, Morgan, Towers
20	26 November 1955	Torquay United	H	1–3	11,547	Heath
21	3 December 1955	Newport County	A	2–1	8,035	Morgan, Dudley
22	17 December 1955	Gillingham	A	2–1	5,867	Francis, Bristow
23	24 December 1955	Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic	H	2–1	8,592	Coote, Taylor
24	26 December 1955	Reading	H	2–2	12,556	Robertson, Rainford
25	27 December 1955	Reading	A	2–5	11,910	Bragg (pen), Francis
26	31 December 1955	Norwich City	A	0–1	18,542
27	14 January 1956	Colchester United	H	2–2	8,492	Rainford, Taylor
28	21 January 1956	Leyton Orient	A	1–2	14,009	Morgan
29	4 February 1956	Exeter City	H	2–0	6,309	Francis (2)
30	11 February 1956	Southend United	A	2–2	5,124	Towers, Stirling (og)
31	18 February 1956	Aldershot	H	2–0	7,026	Towers (2)
32	25 February 1956	Crystal Palace	A	2–0	10,054	Towers (2)
33	3 March 1956	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	4–2	11,061	Robertson (2), Goundry, Francis
34	10 March 1956	Southampton	A	1–1	11,678	Towers
35	12 March 1956	Swindon Town	H	1–2	7,249	Towers
36	17 March 1956	Shrewsbury Town	H	1–1	9,156	Towers
37	24 March 1956	Ipswich Town	A	1–1	13,672	Towers
38	31 March 1956	Walsall	H	2–2	8,933	Towers, Coote
39	2 April 1956	Northampton Town	H	2–1	9,527	Towers (2)
40	3 April 1956	Northampton Town	A	0–1	8,248
41	7 April 1956	Torquay United	A	1–3	5,574	Taylor
42	14 April 1956	Newport County	H	1–1	5,291	Towers
43	21 April 1956	Swindon Town	A	1–0	5,790	Peplow
44	23 April 1956	Coventry City	H	1–1	6,078	Bragg (pen)
45	28 April 1956	Watford	A	2–0	7,192	Robinson, Francis
46	3 May 1956	Walsall	A	2–1	9,033	Taylor, Newcombe

FA Cup

Main article: 1955–56 FA Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorer(s)
1R	19 November 1955	March Town United	H	4–0	13,300	Stobbart (2), Towers (pen), Francis
2R	10 December 1955	Leyton Orient	A	1–4	17,490	Taylor

Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Statto, 11v11

Playing squad

Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1955–56 season.

Pos.	Name	Date of birth (age)	Signed from	Signed in	Notes
Goalkeepers
GK	Gerry Cakebread	(1936-04-01)1 April 1936 (aged 19)	Youth	1954
GK	Reg Newton	(1926-06-30)30 June 1926 (aged 29)	Leyton Orient	1949
Defenders
DF	Alan Bassham	(1933-10-03)3 October 1933 (aged 21)	Youth	1953
DF	Ken Horne	(1926-06-25)25 June 1926 (aged 29)	Blackpool	1950
DF	George Lowden	(1933-03-02)2 March 1933 (aged 22)	Unattached	1951
DF	Sid Tickridge (c)	(1923-04-10)10 April 1923 (aged 32)	Chelsea	1955
Midfielders
HB	Wally Bragg	(1929-07-08)8 July 1929 (aged 26)	Twickenham Celtic	1946
HB	George Bristow	(1933-06-25)25 June 1933 (aged 22)	Youth	1950
HB	Ken Coote	(1928-05-19)19 May 1928 (aged 27)	Wembley	1949
HB	Ian Dargie	(1931-10-03)3 October 1931 (aged 23)	Tonbridge	1952
HB	Leonard Geard	(1934-02-12)12 February 1934 (aged 21)	Fulham	1953
HB	Frank Latimer	(1923-10-03)3 October 1923 (aged 31)	Snowdown Colliery Welfare	1945
HB	Johnny Rainford	(1930-12-11)11 December 1930 (aged 24)	Cardiff City	1953
HB	Terry Robinson	(1929-11-08)8 November 1929 (aged 25)	Loughborough College	1954	Amateur
HB	Len Roe	(1932-01-11)11 January 1932 (aged 23)	Ruislip Manor	1951
Forwards
FW	Frank Dudley	(1925-05-09)9 May 1925 (aged 30)	Cardiff City	1953
FW	George Francis	(1934-02-04)4 February 1934 (aged 21)	Youth	1955
FW	Billy Goundry	(1934-03-28)28 March 1934 (aged 21)	Huddersfield Town	1955
FW	Dennis Heath	(1934-09-28)28 September 1934 (aged 20)	Youth	1954
FW	Wendell Morgan	(1935-04-22)22 April 1935 (aged 20)	Cardiff City	1954
FW	Len Newcombe	(1931-02-28)28 February 1931 (aged 24)	Fulham	1956
FW	John Pearson	(1935-04-23)23 April 1935 (aged 20)	Youth	1955
FW	Ron Peplow	(1935-05-04)4 May 1935 (aged 20)	Southall	1955
FW	James Robertson	(1929-02-20)20 February 1929 (aged 26)	Arsenal	1953
FW	Billy Sperrin	(1922-04-09)9 April 1922 (aged 33)	Guildford City	1949
FW	George Stobbart	(1921-01-09)9 January 1921 (aged 34)	Millwall	1954
FW	Jeff Taylor	(1930-09-20)20 September 1930 (aged 24)	Fulham	1954
FW	Jim Towers	(1933-04-15)15 April 1933 (aged 22)	Youth	1954

Sources: 100 Years Of Brentford, Timeless Bees

Coaching staff

Name	Role
Bill Dodgin Sr.	Manager
Jimmy Bain	Assistant manager
Tommy Eggleston	Trainer
Jack Holliday	Assistant trainer

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Cakebread Lowden Tickridge (c) Bragg Bristow Coote Morgan Towers Goundry Robertson Taylor Brentford's highest appearance-makers in each position during the Football League season.

Pos	Nat	Name	League		FA Cup		Total
Pos	Nat	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK		Gerry Cakebread	45	0	2	0	47	0
GK		Reg Newton	1	0	0	0	1	0
DF		Alan Bassham	10	0	0	0	10	0
DF		Ken Horne	7	0	0	0	7	0
DF		George Lowden	15	0	0	0	15	0
DF		Sid Tickridge	39	0	2	0	41	0
HB		Wally Bragg	29	2	0	0	29	2
HB		George Bristow	27	1	1	0	28	1
HB		Ken Coote	45	2	2	0	47	2
HB		Ian Dargie	4	0	0	0	4	0
HB		Leonard Geard	3	0	0	0	3	0
HB		Frank Latimer	10	0	1	0	11	0
HB		Johnny Rainford	37	3	2	0	39	3
HB		Terry Robinson	15	1	2	0	17	1
HB		Len Roe	4	0	1	0	5	0
FW		Frank Dudley	14	2	1	0	15	2
FW		George Francis	17	7	1	1	18	8
FW		Billy Goundry	23	1	0	0	23	1
FW		Dennis Heath	17	1	1	0	18	1
FW		Wendell Morgan	16	5	1	0	17	5
FW		Len Newcombe	3	1	—		3	1
FW		John Pearson	4	0	0	0	4	0
FW		Ron Peplow	3	1	0	0	3	1
FW		James Robertson	22	3	0	0	22	3
FW		Billy Sperrin	2	0	0	0	2	0
FW		George Stobbart	12	2	1	2	13	4
FW		Jeff Taylor	43	15	2	1	45	16
FW		Jim Towers	39	21	2	1	41	22

Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

Goalscorers

Pos.	Player	FL3	FAC	Total
FW	Jim Towers	21	1	22
FW	Jeff Taylor	15	1	16
FW	George Francis	7	1	8
FW	Wendell Morgan	5	0	5
FW	George Stobbart	2	2	4
HB	Johnny Rainford	3	0	3
FW	James Robertson	3	0	3
HB	Wally Bragg	2	0	2
HB	Ken Coote	2	0	2
FW	Frank Dudley	2	0	2
FW	Len Newcombe	1	—	1
HB	George Bristow	1	0	1
FW	Billy Goundry	1	0	1
FW	Dennis Heath	1	0	1
FW	Ron Peplow	1	0	1
HB	Terry Robinson	1	0	1
Opponents		1	0	1
Total		69	5	74

Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
Source: 100 Years Of Brentford

Amateur international caps

Pos.	Nat	Player	Caps	Goals	Ref
HB		Terry Robinson	2	0

Management

Name	Nat	From	To	Record All Comps					Record League
Name	Nat	From	To	P	W	D	L	W %	P	W	D	L	W %
Bill Dodgin Sr.		20 August 1955	3 May 1956	48	20	14	14	041.67	46	19	14	13	041.30

Summary

Games played	48 (46 Third Division South, 2 FA Cup)
Games won	20 (19 Third Division South, 1 FA Cup)
Games drawn	14 (14 Third Division South, 0 FA Cup)
Games lost	14 (13 Third Division South, 1 FA Cup)
Goals scored	74 (69 Third Division South, 5 FA Cup)
Goals conceded	70 (66 Third Division South, 4 FA Cup)
Clean sheets	12 (11 Third Division South, 1 FA Cup)
Biggest league win	3–0 on two occasions
Worst league defeat	4–0 versus Millwall, 5 September 1955
Most appearances	47, Gerry Cakebread, Ken Coote (45 Third Division South, 2 FA Cup)
Top scorer (league)	21, Jim Towers
Top scorer (all competitions)	22, Jim Towers

Transfers & loans

Players transferred in
Date	Pos.	Name	Previous Club	Fee	Ref.
May 1955	FW	Billy Goundry	Huddersfield Town	Free
July 1955	DF	Sid Tickridge	Chelsea	n/a
August 1955	FW	Ken Morgan	Northampton Town	n/a
August 1955	FW	Ron Peplow	Southall	n/a
April 1956	FW	Len Newcombe	Fulham	n/a
Players transferred out
Date	Pos.	Name	Subsequent club	Fee	Ref.
October 1955	FW	Ken Morgan	Crystal Palace	n/a
April 1956	DF	Ken Moffitt	Berwick Rangers	n/a
Players released
Date	Pos.	Name	Subsequent club	Join date	Ref.
May 1956	HB	Leonard Geard	Kettering Town	August 1956
May 1956	HB	Frank Latimer	Gravesend & Northfleet	July 1956
May 1956	FW	James Robertson	Gravesend & Northfleet	July 1956
May 1956	FW	Billy Sperrin	Tunbridge Wells United	1956
May 1956	FW	George Stobbart	Bedford Town	1956

References

^ "Brentford results for the 1954–1955 season". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 23 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
^ White 1989, p. 218-220.
^ White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. p. 383. ISBN 0951526200.
^ "Brentford results for the 1955–1956 season". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
^ Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 14-15.
^ "Testimonial Game For Jimmy Bain" (PDF). Brentford Football Club Official Programme v. Swindon Town. 21 August 1956. p. 5. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
^ Richardson, David. "Fulham 0–3 Brentford: Tim Ream sent off as Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo strike again for Bees". Sky Sports. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Yore Publications. ISBN 978-0955294914.
"England Matches – The Amateurs 1947–1962". www.englandfootballonline.com. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
"Billy Goundry". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
"Sid Tickridge". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
^ "Ken Morgan". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
"Ron Peplow". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
"Len Newcombe". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
"Player Appearances and goalscoring records – M". Scottish Football Historical Archive. p. 443. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
"Len Geard Goes To Kettering". The Brentford & Chiswick Times. 3 August 1956.
^ "It's Goodbye To Frank And Jimmy". The Brentford & Chiswick Times. 17 August 1956.
Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 152.
Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 155.

v t e Brentford F.C. seasons
1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–1900
1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10
1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20
1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30
1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40
1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50
1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60
1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70
1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80
1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90
1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000
2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10
2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

1955–56 in English football

« 1954–55 1956–57 »

FA competitions

Football League

Football League

Lower leagues

Related to national team

Club seasons

First Division

Second Division

Third Division

North	Accrington Stanley Barrow Bradford City Bradford Park Avenue Carlisle United Chester Chesterfield Crewe Alexandra Darlington Derby County Gateshead Grimsby Town Halifax Town Hartlepools United Mansfield Town Oldham Athletic Rochdale Scunthorpe & Lindsey United Southport Stockport County Tranmere Rovers Workington Wrexham York City
South	Aldershot Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic Brentford Brighton & Hove Albion Colchester United Coventry City Crystal Palace Exeter City Gillingham Ipswich Town Leyton Orient Millwall Newport County Northampton Town Norwich City Queens Park Rangers Reading Shrewsbury Town Southampton Southend United Swindon Town Torquay United Walsall Watford

Categories: