Thomas Frank talked of relishing the battle even with the odds against them. The gap to Watford in the second automatic spot is down from nine to eight but with five games left, belief is escaping Brentford based on what was served up here.
This was an opportunity missed. It seems a second date with the play-offs is to come and if they are going to win promotion through that route they will need to play far better.
One shot on target for a side that boasts the Championship’s top scorer in Ivan Toney is a head-scratcher.