Brentford 5-1 Eastleigh: Spitfires crash out of FA Cup after Bees' first-half blitz

After succumbing to a tenth-minute penalty, Martin Allen’s men were blown away by their on-fire Championship hosts in the opening 45 minutes – albeit that Ayo Obileye’s goal offered them a glimmer of hope at 3-1.

But given that the Spitfires travelled with a side ravaged by injury, suspension and unavailability, they put in a good shift for their vocal club record travelling contingent who accounted for 1,428 of the 7,537 crowd.

In a rallying message to the fans manager Allen said he hadn’t slept for three days, trying to work out which team to select.

When it arrived, the team sheet contained a fair few surprises with his two transfer-listed players – defender Ayo Obileye and former Portsmouth targetman Ryan Bird – both named in the starting line-up.

With loan goalkeeper Ryan Huddart returning to Arsenal, experienced former Barnet goalkeeper Graham Stack came straight in for his debut, with 19-year-old revelation Mark Childs dropping to the bench to sit alongside Jai Reason, Scott Wilson and Mikael Mandron.

Luke Coulson, subject of a rumoured £100,000 offer from a Football League club, started after being left out of the squad for the 1-0 National League win at Boreham Wood.

It’s not often a manager gets a standing ovation from both sets of fans, but Griffin Park erupted in applause all round the ground as Eastleigh’s former Bees boss Martin Allen made an emotional return to the club where he was such a popular figure a decade ago.

Lining up a back three of Adam Dugdale, Gavin Hoyte and Connor Essam, Allen deployed Michael Green and Wolves loanee Hakeem Odoffin in wing-back roles, while Obileye added height and power to midfield.

But, for all Allen’s meticulous planning, the game got off to a disastrous start for Eastleigh as they suffered a huge double hammer blow with six minutes gone.

With their defence undone by a simple ball through for Lasse Vibe, the Brentford frontman was bundled over by debutant Stack at the expense of a penalty and, to make matters worse, Hoyte – dogged by injury at his previous club Barnet – appeared to pull a muscle as he stretched to challenge the Bees no21.

There was a delay as Hoyte received treatment and Jai Reason eventually came on the replace him, but that proved no distraction for YOANN BARBET who sent Stack the wrong way from the penalty spot.

The Spitfires had their first sight of goal on 15 minutes when Essam headed Green’s right-wing corner wide, but an already difficult task was about to become even trickier for the non-League visitors as the busy Bees extended their lead two minutes later.

It was a goal of beauty too as Romaine Sawyers deliciously chipped in a cross from the right of the area for TOM FIELD to meet with a diving far-post header – his first goal for the club.

Eastleigh earned themselves a free-kick wide left when James Constable was held back and Coulson’s delivery was not far away from Obileye’s outstretched leg.

But, in scrambling the ball clear, Brentford launched a perfect counter-attack and scored a 23rd-minute third right under the noses of the Eastleigh fans, still singing their hearts out in the Brook Road Stand.

Josh McEachran provided the assist and VIBE did the honours beating Stack with a cracking finish with the outside of his boot.

A lesser team might have crumbled, but not so Eastleigh who gutsily pulled a goal back with 29 minutes gone.

Bird’s endeavour earned them a corner which was dangerously swung in by Coulson. Bees stopper Daniel Bentley missed his punch and the ball fell straight to OBILEYE to sweep home.

That boosted the Spitfires who enjoyed their best spell of the game with James Constable hooking a shot wide and one flowing move, begun by Obileye’s long ball forward to Bird, ended with Green getting in a fine cross on the overlap resulting in a corner. Green sent in a dangerous inswinging flag-kick which bounced off the far upright on its way across.

But just when you felt a fightback might be on, the Spitfires were sliced open yet again, this time by McEachran’s defence-splitting pass, and FIELD slid his second goal of the game under the exposed Stack for 4-1.

Four became five in the second minute of stoppage-time when the Bees stung Eastleigh with their best party piece so far.

Ex-Chelsea man McEachran played the ball over the top and Vibe laid it off to SAWYERS to crash home a thumping shot from 25 yards for 5-1 to Brentford – and you shuddered to think what it might have been had the Bees top scorer Scott Hogan been playing.

Half-time: Brentford 5 Eastleigh 1 It was all Brentford at the start of the second half – Sawyers going closest with a 52nd-minute fired wide after Eastleigh had manfully blocked a volley of shots.

The Bees then looked for a penalty when Green brushed past McEachran inside the area, but their appeals were ignored by referee Peter Bankes.

On 55 minutes the Spitfires made their second substitution when Constable made way for pacy frontrunner Scott Wilson and, five minutes later, Mikael Mandron joined Wilson up top as a replacement for Bird.

Those changes breathed new life into the Spitfires as they hit back with a spate of chances.

John Egan came to Brentford’s rescue with a goalline clearance from Scott Wilson before Obileye headed a big chance over from a corner.

The Bees, though, continued to cause havoc as an end to end game unfolded and it needed a strong hand by Spitfires keeper Stack to turn away a stinging shot by sub Josh Clarke.

Stack saved again and again, this time more comfortably from Vibe and McEachran, while Jota appealed in vain for a penalty, convinced he had been clipped as he was about to pull the trigger.

Brentford’s blanket pressure gave Eastleigh openings on the break and on 79 minutes Mandron was desperately unlucky to be crowded out as he looked to get on the end of Wilson’s delivery from the right.

Essam required treatment after falling awkwardly inside the Eastleigh area but when Coulson went down, apparently hurt, a few minutes later, there was no sympathy from the Bees fans who booed him as he bounced back into action.

Eastleigh had defended like Trojans to keep a second-half clean sheet and they so nearly got a second goal themselves in the dying seconds when Jai Reason’s delightful chip from 25 yards so nearly caught Bentley out, but the keeper managed to get a hand to it and turn it away.

Brentford: Dan Bentley, Maxime Colin (Josh Clarke, 46), Harlee Dean (Chris Mepham, 80), Nico Yennaris (Jota, 61), Josh McEachran, John Egan, Ryan Woods, Romaine Sawyers, Lasse Vibe, Yoann Barbet, Tom Field. Subs: Jack Bonham, Sam Saunders, Philipp Hofmann, Alan McCormack.

Eastleigh: Graham Stack, Gavin Hoyte (Jai Reason, 9), Michael Green, Connor Essam, Adam Dugdale, Ayo Obileye, Luke Coulson, Sam Togwell, James Constable (Scott Wilson, 55), Ryan Bird (Mikael Mandron, 61), Hakeem Odoffin. Subs: Mark Childs. Referee: Peter Bankes.

Attendance: 7,537 (1,428 Eastleigh)