Youth Team member Courtney Senior said he is looking for personal and team improvement ahead of the new Under-18 season which starts on Saturday.
Last season The Bees’ finished ninth in the Under-18 Professional Development League Two South, a place and two points behind their opponents on the opening day of the season Millwall.
The Lions did the double over Brentford last season following a 4-2 win in South London and a 5-1 victory at Jersey Road.
Speaking to Bees Player ahead of the start of the new season Courtney said that he is looking for much improved league results this season.
To help the team achieve those better results Courtney is determined to better his goal tally from last season which saw him hit the net just three times in 22 league games.
“Everyone is looking forward to the new season,” said Courtney.
“Hopefully we can get a good win in the first game.
“We are looking to do better this season than last season when we didn’t do too well.
“Last season Millwall beat us twice.
“We have got a good bond this year so hopefully we can beat them on Saturday.
“We won the Milk Cup a couple of years ago and now we are all here as second-years and first years.
“We have won the Milk Cup so why can’t we win the league.
“I am looking to score a lot more goals this season than I did last season.
“I hardly scored any but I am just going to work on it in training.”
Pre-season was tough for the Youth Team this year with many members of the squad preparing to defend their Milk Cup title in Northern Ireland.
Although on the pitch that didn’t go exactly to plan at the Milk Cup Courtney said the fitness and team shape work that was done in the build-up to the tournament will be worth it once the season starts.
The 17-year-old thinks that the intense pre-season schedule has helped the first and second years to gel as a group and that will only help once the season begins.
“Pre-season has been a really good blow but every footballer has to do it,” said Courtney.
“Everyone has got through it and everyone is getting fit and everyone is ready for the new season.
“We went to the Milk Cup and even though we didn’t do too well everyone’s fitness levels were up.
“The preparations up to the Milk Cup were good and everyone was on it from the start.
“Everyone has got a good partnership.
“The new first years have come in and they have settled in with all the second-years well.”
As a second-year scholar Courtney’s immediate focus this season is on doing enough to be awarded his first professional contract next summer.
After Montell Moore’s rise from second-year scholar to the substitutes’ bench at Blackpool in the Sky Bet Championship, Courtney said there is a lot of belief around the Youth Team group that they can be a success at Griffin Park.
Aside from his personal focus to perform on the pitch Courtney thinks it is also very important that he and the other second-year scholars help the new first-years get adjusted to life in the Youth Team.
“I am just trying to break into the First-Team,” said Courtney.
“Montell Moore has done well to break into the First-Team and it has given everyone belief that they can break into the First-Team too.
“You also have to try and bring up the young lads as well because they might not know too much about the year.
“It is going to go quickly this year and we have already told them that.
“It is good that we can help the first-years and they listen as well.
“They look up to us and for things like jobs they listen and get on with it.”