Bees win on penalties to reach Wembley
Brentford 3 Swindon 3 (4-4 on aggregate after extra time)
Brentford won 5-4 on penalties
Adam Forshaw netted the winning penalty in a dramatic shoot-out to fire Brentford into the League One play-off final after an epic second leg.
The Bees were 30 seconds away from victory in normal time, only to be cruelly denied by a Swindon equaliser – but they kept their heads with five perfect penalties and a Simon Moore save to book a place at Wembley.
They will now face Yeovil for the right to play in the Championship next season.
It was a nail-biting conclusion to a breathless match but Sam Saunders, Paul Hayes, Harlee Dean, Tony Craig and Forshaw proved the heroes, scoring with their penalties.
Moore tilted the balance in Brentford’s favour with a save from Miles Storey and Forshaw netted the deciding kick.
That it would come down to penalties taken from the same end where Marcello Trotta missed the crucial injury-time spot-kick against Doncaster which would have won them automatic promotion is an irony that will not be lost on any Bees fans.
But they could have been celebrating a lot earlier – only to suffer yet more heartbreak deep into five minutes of stoppage time.
Brentford were 3-1 up and cruising early in the second half thanks to an own goal and Clayton Donaldson’s double either side of the interval, with Adam Rooney netting at the other end.
But Swindon defender Joe Devera hauled his side back into contention, lashing home from a corner, and with time almost up, Aden Flint headed home to leave Brentford suffering from the most acute case of deja vu.
However, the tale had a happy ending with Forshaw’s winning penalty – and the Bees are now 90 minutes from the second tier.
These two sides were meeting again less than 48 hours after the 1-1 draw at the County Ground on Saturday, and Bees boss Uwe Rosler opted, among four changes, to recall Trotta to face down his demons.
Swindon started brightly and Moore tipped over Flint’s header in the opening minutes.
Brentford soon began to exert themselves and got their reward on 23 minutes when Rooney got the last touch on a Harry Forrester corner.
They created a series of chances to deliver a second blow, Forrester seeing a firm shot from an acute angle beaten away by Swindon keeper Wes Foderingham and Trotta hitting the base of the near post.
With five minutes to go before half-time, Donaldson brought the roof off a vibrant Griffin Park with a low shot from 20 yards which crept into the corner to put the Bees seemingly in control.
However, Swindon pulled a goal back just before the break, Rooney drilling home from inside the box, to bring anxiety to the stands once more.
It took Brentford less than 90 seconds to ease the tension as Donaldson collected a sloppy pass in midfield, ran 50 yards and clipped a confident finish past Foderingham.
Swindon, seeking back-to-back promotions, were not a spent force and brought it back to 3-2 on 57 minutes, Devera blasting home after the home defence failed to deal with a corner.
Both sides had several half chances in a frantic second period, with substitute Sam Saunders almost adding a fourth late on with a curling effort which clipped the crossbar.
But the resilient Robins launched concerted pressure on the beleagured Bees defence during injury time and, although they managed to clear one effort off the line, Flint’s dramatic header sent the game into another 30 minutes.
Nathan Byrne’s second yellow card, for deliberate handball to prevent Donaldson taking advantage of the defender’s slip, reduced Swindon to 10 men in extra time.
Brentford had the best of the extra-time chances, with Donaldson being denied a hat-trick by the legs of Foderingham.
Nobody could force a winner – until Forshaw stepped up to spark wild celebrations.
Brentford (4-1-2-3) Moore; Logan, Dean, Craig, Bidwell; Diagouraga; Adeyemi (Douglas 55), Forshaw; Donaldson, Trotta (Hayes 82), Forrester (Saunders 69).
Subs not used: Gounet, O’Connor, Wright-Phillips, Hodson.
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