Published: 21:37, 28 October 2025 | Updated: 21:38, 28 October 2025

The second strike of lightning never afraid. They had come in droves, a black-and-white army marching through the tight streets, hoping for a miracle but it was all too much.

Grimsby Town had captured the hearts of neutrals, thanks to their heroics against Manchester United in August, and left locals hoping the League Cup’s quarter-finals would include their team’s name for the first time since 1985.

Football, though, only provides romance only fleetingly. Here was a sobering lesson, a ruthless dismantling at the hands of an established and progressive Premier League side that – do not forget – have grand ambitions of their own.

Brentford were never going to misjudge the potential for a mishap against League Two opposition and they treated this assignment with a total professionalism. They gave Grimsby maximum respect with they approached the contest but they also gave them a shellacking for good measure.

In the end, there were five unanswered goals and it was the kind of display that left you thinking the prospect of Brentford going deep...