Kevin O’Connor said Derby County’s players showed their quality as Brentford’s run in the Capital One Cup came to an end last night.
The Bees were beaten 5-0 by the Championship side in the Second Round of the League Cup at Pride Park.
Club Captain Kevin, speaking to Bees Player after the match, said it was a disappointing evening.
He said Brentford did well in patches but were punished by Derby when they lost the ball in key areas.
Manager Uwe Rösler handed a Brentford debut to Development Squad winger Josh Clarke, who started in midfield, and brought on Alfie Mawson for his debut late on.
Fellow Development Squad players Luke Norris and Aaron Pierre also got game time and Kevin said it would have been a good experience for them.
“I thought we started OK,” he said.
“We passed the ball and then we started to make mistakes.
“We lost the ball in certain areas and they broke on us.
“They overrun us a little bit in the first half, which was disappointing.
“It was a disappointing night all in all but it was god experience for the young lads.
“We did well in patches but when we didn’t do well they broke straight on us and looked really dangerous.
“I think you saw what happens when you play teams that can punish you.
“They are a Championship club, they have good players and they showed it.”
Brentford started brightly but fell behind after 20 minutes.
Derby then scored two in two minutes before half time and added another two late on.
Kevin said heads may have dropped when the goals went in and admitted mistakes were made.
But he said confidence in the camp would not be affected.
“They scored goals quickly and maybe heads dropped,” said the skipper.
“Perhaps players stopped making the angles they should have done.
“We came up against a team in good form and it was one of those nights.
“We came here with nothing to lose.
“There were changes to the team and some young lads got a run out.
“It hasn’t worked out but it won’t knock the confidence, no way.
“We tried our best but it was really tough.
“We made mistakes, they had some good players and they punished you.”
Brentford sit fourth in Sky Bet League One with eight points from their first four games.
Kevin said The Bees look strong and he felt the squad was better than last season when Brentford finished third in the league and lost the Play-Off Final.
He said the players would now look ahead to the Sky Bet League One game against Carlisle United on Saturday.
“The season has started well.
“We have two wins and two draws in the league.
“We look strong.
“It looks really good, we are playing good football.
“The squad is better than last year and we came really close last year.
“This has gone and we are back to the league on Saturday.”
A full post-match interview with Kevin O’Connor is available here for Bees Player subscribers.