Brentford B drew 0-0 with Puerto Pro FC in Ikast, Denmark this afternoon. Stormy conditions meant there was a 40-minute break between the first and second halves, which made for a cagey affair in Western Jutland.
Neil MacFarlane made six changes to the side that lost to Arsenal back home. Nathan Sheppered returned in goal, with Jonny Mitchell taking the captain's armband at the back.
The first real chance almost came in the opening minutes, Mitchell moments away from getting a free header from a few yards out. A Puerto defender managed to nod it away just in front of the Scot.
With 10 gone, Brentford could have had a penalty. Jaden Brissett skipped past one player, then spun on the ball and was caught on the leg but stayed on his feet. This time his honesty cost him, the referee letting play go on despite protests from the players and the bench.
After 25 minutes, the South Americans made their first meaningful chance. A ball cut inside was shot low from the edge of the box. Shepperd was down quickly to keep it out.
Nick Tsaroulla showed a turn of pace down the left to create a superb overlap after 36 minutes. His ball into the box was inviting as well, but a Puerto defender got across ahead of Brissett.
With five minutes to go until the break, Kane O'Connor almost broke the deadlock. A long ball over the top by Christian Tue Jensen saw the defender reach it at the far post. He couldn't quite get enough power on the header but it still needed a touch from the keeper to get it wide of the post.
Over the break, the officials decided to allow more time for the thunder overhead to clear. After 40 minutes, the sun came out and the game could get back underway. Puerto almost scored an opener in the first minute of the second half. A corner came over the top, the ball dropped in amongst the bodies and eventually The Bees cleared.
The second 45 was a stop-start period of football. Brentford's opponents were operating rolling subs and injuries paused the game a few times. This meant the tempo was wiped from the field more often than not.
Tackles were also flying in from both sides as time went on. David Titov was lucky to escape without even a card for a late challenge near the halfway line. Equally, PPFC could have seen a man sent off for a high tackle on Jensen around the same spot.
Jensen also saw a couple of free-kicks go narrowly close to finding the net. The first he bent around the wall as the keeper parried it away at full stretch. Then he blasted one inches over the crossbar from the right side of the field.
Brentford B: Shepperd (Andersson 81); Titov, O'Connor, Mitchell (Trialist 77), Tsaroulla; Tue Jensen (Oksanen 63), Carre (Hammar 63), Read; Brissett (Trialist 77), Mogensen, Adams (Trialist 69)