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“He’d have been very proud”: Brentford B dedicate 6-2 win to Robert Rowan’s memory

Brentford B did Robert Rowan proud as they stormed to a 6-2 victory over Bournemouth U-21 said manager Neil MacFarlane.

The game was played at the Gtech Community Stadium in memory of Brentford’s former technical director, who passed away at the age of 28 in 2018 from an undiagnosed heart condition. All proceeds went to Heart of West London, a partnership of organisation and charities who collaborate with the club to raise awareness around cardiac health and undertake vital research.

“It meant a lot to myself, the staff, and all the players. To get that for Rob and his memory is special, he’d have been very proud of the second half in particular,” said MacFarlane.

“Suzanne Rowan and all his family are still fantastic supporters of this project and this football club and I hope we did them proud tonight.”

A sun soaked Gtech Community Stadium pitch sees Brentford and Bournemouth players competing fro the ball
A sun soaked Gtech Community Stadium

Brentford took the lead through Daniel Oyegoke, but a double from Bournemouth’s Daniel Adu-Adjei left them trailing at the break.

Mukhammadali Urinboev restored parity midway through the second-half and the Bees’ capitalised on their momentum – Ryan Trevitt adding a third shortly after. A flurry of late goals then punctuated the Bees’ victory, with Trevitt adding another from the spot and Max Dickov finishing coolly soon after.

Ethan Laidlaw’s superb curling effort put the cherry on Brentford’s cake in stoppage time, cementing them as runaway winners.

Romeo Beckham takes on his full-back on a sun soaked Gtech Community Stadium
Romeo Beckham, taking on his full-back here, started for Brentford B

Urinboev’s equaliser was his first goal in a Brentford shirt, marking a proud moment for the attacking midfielder, who is on loan from Super League side Pakhtakor in his home country of Uzbekistan.

“I’m so happy to score my first goal against Brentford. I think we played very well in the second half and I want to thank the fans for their support,” he said.

It was a moment made even more special by the setting: a Premier League stadium.

“It was my dream to play in a Premier League stadium when I was younger and now I’m here, Alhamdulillah,” the 19-year-old added.

Tony Yogane controls the ball for Brentford

Rowan played an instrumental role in founding Brentford B and the current squad showed their appreciation for his legacy even though many of them had not joined the club at the time of his passing.

 “We’ve been told he was a great guy and he’s done so much for Brentford, so we needed to repay that tonight and I think in the performance we’ve done that. We did it for him,” said midfielder Ethan Brierley.

Author

  • Jonny Coffey

    Jonny Coffey, 21, is a London-based sports journalist focusing on football. Fascinated by tactics, Coffey is famed for his introduction of inverted full backs to the second division of Cambridge college football, and his admiration for Carlo Ancelotti’s eyebrows. A lifelong Arsenal fan, his interest in analysing wing play is a thinly-veiled ploy to rave about Bukayo Saka.