A reasonable argument can be made that residing in the Premier League is glory enough, it being one of the most exclusive, lucrative and glamorous institutions in world sport.
To compete among the elite of English football is a substantial achievement for any club, not least a club such as Bournemouth who only 15 years ago very nearly went to the wall as they spiralled down into League Two.
Factoring in also their modest resources and the Cherries’ sustained stint in the top-flight, across six of the last eight seasons, equates to a minor miracle.
We take it for granted through familiarity. We really shouldn’t.
Then there’s Brentford who, under Thomas Frank and courtesy of some outstanding work done behind the scenes, gained entry to the highest echelon for the first time in 74 years and just two years later find themselves featuring in the Premier League top four odds for much of 2022/23.
Bees fans are presently enjoying their best life, feeling inordinate pride at witnessing their side take on, and better, football’s aristocracy.
But of course, though these are bona fide success stories there is another kind of success, one not aligned to status or league standings.
Instead it is a success that propels the game forward, giving each and every one of us hope, hope that when realised become memories that are treasured forever.
It is cups won. Days out at Wembley. Filling every back page of newspapers with blown-up photographs of our team drenched in club-coloured confetti.
Sadly, for Brentford, formed in 1889, these special days have thus far eluded them with only defunct or highly obscure trophies on their honours roll.
There’s the Ealing Hospital Cup, attained in 1910. They are the three time winners of the London Challenge Cup. Bizarrely, on their Wikipedia page, there is even acknowledgement of a Middlesex Junior Cup triumph a few years into their existence.
Bournemouth too have not a single FA Cup or League Cup final appearance to reminisce on, though there have been plenty of promotions giving them plenty of joy.
In terms of knock-out glory the best they can muster is lifting the Papa Johns Trophy in an earlier incarnation of the tournament way back in 1984.
The final was played out at Boothferry Park, Hull, in front of 6,500 die-hards. And they are not alone either in being historically starved of success.
Those bitter, if distant, rivals Brighton and Crystal Palace have both experienced heartbreak in FA Cup finals, the Eagles twice-over, the Seagulls once in 1983.
Those if-onlys aside there have only been league accomplishments to recall most fondly from their back catalogue. Indeed, Palace can be construed as the biggest club in England yet to win the league or any form of major competition.
With none of these quartet in real danger of threatening the Premier League title odds anytime soon let’s hope therefore that one of them successfully navigates a path through a domestic competition in the not-too-distant future.
Let’s hope their fans get to see their captain lift a trophy, a sight they will treasure forever. It will have been a long time coming. Their entire history, in fact.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
