Alfie Mawson said he is happy with how his recovery from injury is going ahead of the new season.
The defender damaged Knee ligaments in a game against QPR back in March which ended his season prematurely.
The 20-year-old made his seasonal bow in the Development Squad’s pre-season game against Hampton & Richmond last Tuesday and played an hour in their 2-1 win over Maidenhead United this Tuesday.
Speaking to Bees Player after the win Alfie said he was pleased to get more minutes under his belt ahead of the season.
He admitted he was slightly worried to fully test out his knee at first but now he thinks he is on the way back to full fitness.
“It was a good blow tonight and it was tough to play in that heat which is why it was important to keep the ball,” said Alfie.
“The main thing was to get minutes under my belt.
“I did 45 minutes last week at Hampton.
“Before that I was a little bit edgy to see how it would stand up to a game.
“I was fine in high intensity training and I don’t know why I wondered if I was ready for the game yet.
“I got into it and tonight I got an hour and it felt fine.
“I feel good to get going again.
“I want to get as much time as I can and then see if that stands me in good stead for the new season whether that is here or on loan.
“I have got to try and get a good foundation in the next few games and work hard really.
“I am not fully fit yet but I am getting there.
“60 minutes today was alright but I don’t think I am at 100 per cent yet, that is another bridge for me to get over.
“That will come as my injury improves and as I do more in pre-season.
“It is a waiting game and you have to be patient.
“I don’t want to push my injury too quick but it is going in a good way.”
Jon De Souza’s Development Squad were 2-1 victors on Tuesday night thanks to goals from trialist Dereece Richards and a penalty from Louis Hutton.
The Bees had to withstand a heavy late onslaught from the home side but, despite conceding with eight minutes to go, held on to secure the win.
Alfie felt The Bees did enough defensively to deserve the win over their Skrill South opponents but he thinks they need to be much more precise in possession once the season gets underway.
“I think we did alright,” said Alfie.
“In the first-half we showed how we can play by pressing high with good intensity.
“Jon De Souza said to us at half-time and at full-time that what let us down was our quality.
“Off the ball I thought we were brilliant and I was watching when I came off and everything was working really hard to get the ball back up and down the pitch.
“I think we did enough in terms of closing them down and giving them no real time on the ball.
“I can understand that we were a bit slow and lacklustre on the ball.
“I don’t know whether that was because of fatigue but I think we could have passed it a bit better through the lines.
“You understand that afterwards but it is a bit of a different thing when you are on the pitch.
“I thought it was a positive result and a win is a win.
“The way we are setting up in pre-season is to think less about the technical and the tactical side but get the running in.
“The tactical side can come as we progress into the season.”
Alfie spent a spell on loan at Maidenhead United last season and said it was nice to go back and see some familiar faces at York Road.
The former Reading defender feels that his time on loan in the non-league was a great learning curve for him.
Alfie spent a spell at Maidenhead during the 2012/13 season and then returned for a second time last season.
Alfie thinks that time spent in the non-league set-up is crucial for helping to teach younger players to play in a win at all costs situation.
“It is really nice to see old faces and people who I got on really well with,” said Alfie.
“I was talking to the Maidenhead manager before the match and it made me think that it was nice to have been here.
“I really enjoyed my time here and I haven’t got one bad thing to say about the club.
“They are lovely people, there’s a good set-up and it looks like they are going places.
“It was nice to come back and play.
“I was having a laugh with the lads about how I didn’t know who I was going to play for.
“Having being on loan to a few clubs I know how things work here.
“It is good to have contacts as I never know if I might be back here one day.
“Playing at this level bridges that gap between playing well and winning.
“You can play well every week but I know any manager is going to take the three points on a Saturday over playing well and getting a draw or losing.
“As a player you have to learn to mature and stand up and get your team the three points.
“Winning keeps you in teams and if you are the best player in a team that keeps losing all the time then the finger is going to come down on you eventually.
“It would be good for a few of the younger guys to get a loan in this league because it will benefit them massively as it benefitted me.”
Alfie signed a new one-year Development Squad deal in the summer to keep him at Brentford until the end of the 2014/15 season.
He knows that at the end of this contract he will be too old for another Development Squad contract at Griffin Park so will need to be playing first-team football either with Brentford or elsewhere.
With that in mind he is determined to make the most of this year whether that is at The Bees or out on loan in the Football League or Conference Premier.
“I had my stint in the Conference South last year and I have been at a few Conference Premier teams too,” said Alfie.
“I think this year I have to go to a full-time Conference Premier side or a League Two or League One side to kick on.
“It is nice to say all these things but if it isn’t meant to be then it isn’t meant to be.
“This is my last crack at the whip and we will see how we get on this year.”