Things aren’t quite going according to plan, are they?

Four league matches into the season and Brentford find themselves bottom of the League One table having picked up a solitary point from a possible 12.

Having assembled a strong squad over the summer, the Bees were supposed to come hurtling out of the traps and up the league, but sadly, as Mick Jagger likes to warble, you can’t always get what you want.

Some promising attacking play has been undermined by woeful defending and I think it is fair to say that the lack of certainty regarding the goalkeeping situation has been a contributing factor.

With three keepers used already, there has been more chopping and changing than at a gender reassignment clinic.

At least we have had a bit of relief in the cups. Only a bit, mind. The win against Hull City showed what the team is capable of, but a 1-0 victory over Stevenage in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy is something only a certified lunatic would get overly excited about.

Yet when you have had the kind of horrendous start we have had in the league, it gives you no option but to seek comfort in the warmth of the kind of football-related clichés that present themselves after wins like the Stevenage one.

We want to go as far we can in the Paint Pot Trophy, a clean sheet is something to build on, wins breed confidence, we are looking to take our cup form into our league games (that’s enough cliches – Ed).

A Carling Cup third round home tie with Everton was our reward for beating Hull and it should be an exciting night at Griffin Park when the Premiership side rolls into town.

I am doubly excited, obviously, as it will give me a chance to dust off some crass gags, like the one about the Scousers trying to steal a win, but before then we’ve got to address the small matter of getting our league season up and running.

For the time being I am happy to take Corporal Jones’ advice and not panic, but that is going to be easier said than done if our winless League One run continues for much longer.

On Sunday afternoon we have got Sheffield Wednesday to contend with and the game promises to be tougher than my mum’s roast beef.

The only way the Bees will take anything from it, and from our subsequent games, is if we can finally cut out those defensive errors and that, of course, is easier said than done.