Brentford's reality cheque hits right notes

It will take Brentford 23 home games to generate comparable income from match sponsors (£2,225 per game), who are also provided with hospitality for 20 guests.

During the course of the Premiership season, United will bank £950,000 from VIP seating alone. This figure represents more than 41 per cent of Brentford's annual turnover of £2.3 million.

While Brentford's sales have risen, wages have stabilised but continue to exceed income. Last year, the wage bill was 146 per cent of turnover and an incredible 280 per cent of gate receipts.

Vodafone spends £30m (over four years) on having its name on the front of United's shirts. Brentford will not disclose how much their shirt sponsor, GMB union, pay, but it will be considerably less. The union is in its fourth year of a relationship that was originally due to expire last season. It was so impressed by Brentford's community work that it agreed to extend the sponsorship deal.

"We get considerably less than United, but if we achieve promotion, we would hope to generate around £200,000 from shirt sponsors," says Hargraves.

That's only £7.3m per season less than Manchester United. The scale may be different, but the passion to succeed at Brentford burns with the same intensity.

This is the club which, in October, became the first in the history of the Football League to stage a league match and let all supporters in for free. The attendance - 11,097 - was the highest for 10 years.

Income at the club shop and the tea bars doubled on the day of the match, but the beneficial knock-on effect is still being felt. The following Tuesday night, Brentford were at home to Bury and the attendance was more than 1,100 higher than had been anticipated.

The momentum continued into the following two home games, against Blackpool (7,605) and QPR (10,800). It gave Brentford - who went down 3-2 at Scunthorpe in the FA Cup on Saturday and missed out on a third round trip to Millwall - an average league attendance of 6,643, well up on last term's 4,645.

Brentford recognise the local goodwill they have created and see this as an opportunity to bring more fans into Griffin Park.

Last month they announced the issue of 'half-season' tickets; sales have been good, reflecting the fact that, having simplified their ticket prices, Brentford is now one of the cheapest places in England to watch pro football. Commercial creativity extends to the roof space at Griffin Park, where the stadium sponsors have painted their name, taking advantage of being on the approach flight path to Heathrow.

Deals have been concluded with LDV, who have provided minibuses to ferry the reserve and youth teams to away games.

A local car dealer, Warwick Wright, has supplied two vehicles for 18 months and discussions are under way with NHS Direct.

These are the types of commercial arrangements that have a resonance with the average football fan or team organiser who will usually experience difficulty in collecting subs or organising transport for away games.

The gilded world of the Premiership could be on the moon. Because of this, perhaps more supporters do want to get back to how the game was on the eve of the 1990World Cup finals. This may also explain why more people attend Football League matches than Premiership ones.

Towards the end of my conversation, there was a sudden congratulatory cheer in the background. The commercial department had struck a deal for match sponsorship, worth £2,225.

Twenty people will now enjoy a Bucks Fizz reception, three-course meal, directors' box seats and a host of other goodies at a Brentford home game in the New Year.

Did this mean the players would be flying north, after finishing off training, for the trip to Scunthorpe?

The MD nearly fell off his chair. "They'll be going up by coach," he said.