And so the drought continues.

Albion's relegation worries are mounting by the match after another blank and another bleak result.

It is now 400 minutes without a goal and eight defeats in 11 in all competitions for Dean Wilkins' struggling side.

Wilkins started with a pint-sized forward partnership of Dean Cox and Jake Robinson and handed a full debut in midfield to Frenchman Alexis Bertin - but it made no difference to what is now an all too familiar story.

Bas Savage, dropped to the bench after one game, was part of an improved performance in the second half but the damage had been done.

The Seagulls were already a goal down and a man down by then, Kerry Mayo receiving his marching orders just before the break, as Brentford's revival continued.

The buzzing Bees have now taken seven points from their last three outings. Sadly, Albion appear to be heading in the opposite direction.

Often this season Albion have generally defended well only to concede a goal in sloppy fashion.

It was a flaw they corrected in a hat-trick of clean sheets against Chesterfield, Port Vale and Rotherham but old habits die hard and the Seagulls almost gifted Brentford an early lead.

An unconvincing square pass back across the face of his own area by Nicky Ward put Michel Kuipers in trouble.

The keeper was forced into a hurried clearance, with Jo Kuffour lurking, which went straight out to Joe Keith on the left flank.

Kuipers, stranded yards from his goal, became a nervous onlooker as Keith's attempt to find the empty net from 25 yards drifted narrowly wide.

There was a general lethargy about Albion at the beginning of the match against a Brentford team buoyed by their surprise 3-1 win at Blackpool in their previous outing.

Keith, signed from Leyton Orient for the rest of the season, delivered a free-kick from the right which was headed just wide at the far post by Garry Richards.

Albion ought to have been forewarned. Richards, a 6ft 3ins centre half making his debut on a month's loan from Colchester, had only last week headed in a corner to earn Colchester victory in the Championship at home to Preston.

It was no great surprise when Brentford went ahead in the 31st minute.

Bertin, a busy presence in the centre of the park up to that point, lost possession just inside Brentford territory.

Neil Shipperley timed his pass perfectly to put his partner Kuffour clean through the middle and he calmly slotted past Kuipers for his 12th goal of the season.

Brentford boss Scott Fitzgerald believes the experienced Shipperley, signed during the January transfer window on a free transfer from Sheffield United, and Kuffour can keep his team up.

They certainly linked up well together for the goal and Kuffour, a more industrious version of former Albion goalscorer Leon Knight, had already looked lively before adding to the two goals he scored at Blackpool.

It was the first time Albion's defence had been punctured in six hours and nine minutes of League One action, a miserly period in which Kerry Mayo had been a steadying influence at leftback.

Mayo had been on the wrong end of a couple of 4-0 defeats and a 2-0 loss in his previous visits to Griffin Park with the Seagulls and a red card on the stroke of half-time for a second bookable offence added to his miserable record at the West London venue.

He had already been cautioned for a foul on Charlie Ide when he played the ball against Brentford's young right winger and then tugged him back.

Referee Keith Hill had no option other than to show Mayo his second red card of the campaign.

He was also dismissed at about the same time in the 4-1 home mauling by Crewe at the end of August.

Mayo's premature departure completed a wretched opening 45 minutes for Albion.

They looked dangerous at times when they got the ball down and tried to pass their way through Brentford on a pitch which quickly cut up.

But the final ball into the box was poor, with the out-of-sorts Robinson the main culprit.

Albion looked far more of a threat in the second half with ten men than they had with 11.

Wilkins reacted to Mayo's absence by bringing on Savage, moving Cox back into midfield and Adam El-Abd to rightback and switching Joe O'Cearuill to leftback.

His revised side were much more purposeful going forward and they created several chances to equalise.

Dean Hammond, moved out to the left side of midfield to accommodate Bertin, had a header from a long-range free-kick by El-Abd saved by Nathan Abbey.

The skipper was also just too high with another header from a cross by Cox.

Savage nearly improved his modest goalscoring record on a couple of occasions.

Abbey blocked away the big striker's low angled drive after a goal-saving tackle inside his area by Richards on Robinson.

Abbey foiled Savage once more in the 63rd minute, clinging onto his downward header from Cox's corner.

Brentford fashioned a number of opportunities themselves to make their numerical advantage count.

Both Richards and his partner in the centre of defence, Andy Frampton, went close with headers from deliveries by the influential Keith.

Kuipers was called into action to turn behind a low drive from 25 yards by Keith and to stop one-handed an angled effort from Sam Tillen, marauding forward from leftback.

Albion's goal led a charmed life in the closing stages.

Kuipers tipped over a shot from Shipperley, John Mousinho had an effort blocked on the line by El-Abd and Ide wastefully volleyed over.

Brentford nearly paid for their charity when Abbey dropped a cross from Bertin but Joe Gatting, on in place of Guy Butters, blazed over on the turn.

It would not have counted in any case, referee Hill spotting an infringement on Abbey, but it was symptomatic of the goalscoring deficiency which, unless rectified, will send the Seagulls down into League Two.