Both managers ‘disappointed and frustrated’ after Brentford stalemate

Brentford head coach Dean Smith and Preston boss Alex Neil both left Griffin Park “disappointed and frustrated” following a niggly 1-1 draw.

Tom Barkhuizen gave the visitors the lead with a cross that eluded everyone and flew inside the far post, before Florian Jozefzoon replied for the Bees with a neat turn and shot eight minutes later.

Smith said North End were “like a tag team” in trying to knock his footballing Brentford side out of their stride.

“They took it in turns to stop us playing and that must have been something they looked at to prevent us getting on the front foot,” he said.

“We created the better chances in the game and didn’t take them, but they were banked up into their eight-yard box and that is difficult to play against.”

Smith, who branded last week’s Sergi Canos red card at Derby as “farcical”, had praise for referee Simon Hooper in this bruising encounter.

“I thought he did well because it was a tough game to ref because of Preston’s adopted game plan,” said Smith.

“They made it a scrappy game and were always on the edge of an infringement or getting a player booked, but they have only lost one in 15 in the league so clearly they do it well.

“I had to make three changes but was pleased with the boys’ performance in the way they restricted them to very few chances and always looked to be the aggressors.”

Preston had to play the last 16 minutes with 10 men after Greg Cunningham was sent off, and boss Neil felt there were two key turning points in the game which cost his side maximum points.

He said: “If you’d told our fans coming to Griffin Park, where traditionally we’ve not done well, that we’d be without several players, go down to 10 men and still get a point they’d take that.

“We feel aggrieved and frustrated because Tommy Spurr had a header disallowed for offside when the right-back was playing him on and Josh McEachran hauled Callum Robinson down when he was through on goal and it was a clear red. Both of those decisions change the match.”

He added: “I’m disappointed and frustrated but my team worked extremely hard and defended for our lives after the sending-off, which I’ve got to say was for two soft yellow cards in the space of 70 seconds.”

And he conceded North End’s game plan was simple: to stop Brentford playing.

“You need to get up against them and stop them playing because they are very good football team,” Neil said.

“We coped fantastically well, especially as this has never been a good hunting ground for us.

“One loss in 16 games is an incredible run at this level and if you’d have offered us a point before the game we’d have taken it.”