Sam Saunders feels he is not far away from first-team contention after scoring twice in Monday’s Under-21 Professional Development League Two South win over Crystal Palace.
The midfielder played 90 minutes in the match at Tooting and Mitcham FC as he continues his comeback from a calf injury.
Speaking to Bees Player after the match Sam said: “I am a little bit tired and stiff now but it was good to get through 90 minutes. I have played 60 minutes, 75 and now 90 so I am progressing well. In between the last game and today we have had two or three really hard training sessions. I feel like I have almost done a mini pre-season and the fitness is going well. I was still going strong at the end there and my calf felt so much better than it did the last time that I came back. All in all it was a good day at the office and I am looking to be back sooner rather than later with the first team.”
Sam joins a growing list of Brentford players who are close to returning to first-team contention after early season injuries.
The Bees squad was severely depleted in the early months of the season but with Sam, Lewis Macleod and others beginning to return to full fitness Sam is predicting intense competition for places in the coming weeks.
“There is myself, Lewis Macleod, Jota and Josh McEachran all coming back in,” said Sam. “I always felt it was going to be tough at the start of the season with the new personnel and all the injuries that we got. It wasn’t ideal but the result on Saturday was a good foundation to build on.
“We have got a lot of players coming back. We did 11 vs 11 in training last week and they were all first-team players. It is great to see 22 players all looking for that shirt now. There is a real competition for places and a real intensity in training.”
Crystal Palace took a first-half lead on Monday through Aaron Bissaka and appeared on course for three points when Oliver O’Dwyer added a second early on in the second-half.
However Montell Moore halved the arrears with 22 minutes to play before Sam scored twice in injury time, his first a trademark free-kick and his second a neatly taken left-footed finish, to take the points back to West London.
Sam was really pleased that he was able to contribute to the win which he felt was a well deserved one.
“It was a bonus to get those goals,” said Sam. “It was nice to get back into the knack of scoring goals and seeing the net bulge. It was good for the lads because they worked really hard. Even when they were 2-0 down the passed the ball and never gave up. I am pleased that they got what they deserved and they got the three points. I am also pleased for Kevin because that was his first league win.
“It was nice to see the free-kick go in because from that sort of area I would expect myself to hit the target. The guy slipped for the second goal and it gave me an opportunity to put it onto my left. It is always nice to score. It is good for a bit of confidence for myself and something I can go and knock on Lee Carsley’s door with.
"It was probably a deserved win. Even in the first-half even though they scored I thought we edged it. We created a few chances and for a better final ball could have scored one or two. We conceded a sloppy goal in the second-half but as the game wore on, and we had possession, they were getting deeper and deeper. They couldn’t get out of their half in the last 15 or 20 minutes and there was only one team that was going to win it at the end.”
Bees Player subscribers can watch the full interview with Sam below