Match ends, Brentford 1, Blackburn Rovers 3.
Blackburn were relegated to League One on goal difference, despite beating Brentford at Griffin Park, after Nottingham Forest's win over Ipswich.
Rovers began in the final relegation place, level on points with Forest with an inferior goal difference.
Charlie Mulgrew's free-kick and Danny Guthrie's strike put Rovers ahead, before Lasse Vibe flicked one back.
Craig Conway's spot-kick made it 3-1, as Bees' Harlee Dean saw red but Forest and Birmingham wins sent Rovers down.
- Championship relegation battle as it happened
- Listen: 'The owners have ruined a fantastic club'
- Forest beat Ipswich to secure survival
- Redknapp's Blues beat Bristol City to seal safety
- 'It should never have come to this'
With Birmingham only leading 1-0 against Bristol City at Ashton Gate, a goal for the Robins would have sent Blues down instead of Blackburn - but Harry Redknapp's side held on.
Blackburn had lifted themselves out of the drop zone earlier in the day thanks to Mulgrew's superb free-kick into the top corner.
Guthrie's scuffed effort, which Bees keeper Daniel Bentley should have kept out, doubled their lead, but Britt Assombalonga's goal to put Forest ahead at the City Ground dropped Rovers back into the bottom three.
There was further anguish for Tony Mowbray's side when Vibe got in front of a defender at the near post to turn in Dean's delivery.
Mowbray threw on attack-minded Lucas Joao, Marvin Emnes and Conway in a bid to improve their goal difference.
Emnes was then fouled in the box by Dean, who was given his second yellow card, and Conway blasted home the penalty.
But Rovers, with an inferior goal difference to Forest of just two goals, were relegated to the third tier for the first time in 37 years.
Blackburn's blues
It has been a season-long struggle for Blackburn, both on and off the pitch, having failed to rise above 20th in the table all season.
Supporters have also protested against owners Venky's, who have seen the club slide from the Premier League to the third tier in their seven years at the helm.
Some fans voiced their concern prior to the match that relegation this season could lead to potential administration.
Away from the boardroom, the Lancashire side began the season with Owen Coyle at the helm, who could claim he was not backed in the transfer market, having spent £250,000 of the £10m he recouped in the transfer market.
Coyle left in February after losing just under half his matches in charge and was replaced by Mowbray with the club three points off safety with 15 games to play.
Mowbray had moved to Ewood Park five months after resigning as manager of League One side Coventry, a club that were also relegated this term and with controversial owners of their own.
The new manager's change to a back three proved important in Rovers giving themselves a chance of survival, but it was too late for the 1994-95 Premier League winners.
Blackburn manager Tony Mowbray:
"I am disappointed now but we have to try to keep the spirit we showed here and, if we do, the club will be very strong in League One next year.
"It's decided over 46 games and at the end of the season everyone at the club from the players to the medical team and the analysts have not been good enough to stay in this division.
"We have to take it on the chin. It's going to be a huge summer for us in terms of recruitment, and conversations with the owners are coming - we have to recruit well, be strong next year and bounce back.
"We need to keep our under-contract players. If we do, we will hopefully be too strong for a lot of clubs in League One. We just need to turn the ship around and get promotion."
Brentford boss Dean Smith:
"We wanted to finish the season on a high but there were a lot of tired legs out there - at the end they were putting their bodies on the line and that showed how much it mattered to do their best for the other clubs down there.
"It was what we were doing when we didn't have the ball that annoyed me in the first half. I gave them a rocket at half-time and we started the second half quite well but couldn't make our possession count.
"I feel for Tony. He has done a great job there and if he's allowed to keep the players he has, and the club keep him, then I'm sure they'll be knocking on the door to come back up next season."
Line-ups
Brentford
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Bentley
- 20Clarke
- 6DeanBooked at 83mins
- 29Barbet
- 30FieldSubstituted forBjellandat 64'minutes
- 8Yennaris
- 17KerschbaumerSubstituted forMcCormackat 65'minutes
- 23Jota
- 19Sawyers
- 47CanosSubstituted forJozefzoonat 87'minutes
- 21Vibe
Substitutes
- 5Bjelland
- 7Jozefzoon
- 11Hofmann
- 12McCormack
- 14Egan
- 16Bonham
- 39Westbrooke
Blackburn
Formation 3-4-3
- 33Raya
- 26Lenihan
- 15WardSubstituted forLucas Joãoat 66'minutes
- 14Mulgrew
- 24Nyambe
- 6Lowe
- 23GuthrieSubstituted forConwayat 58'minutesBooked at 78mins
- 5Williams
- 19Gallagher
- 12GrahamSubstituted forEmnesat 72'minutes
- 31Bennett
Substitutes
- 1Steele
- 4Hoban
- 7Feeney
- 17Emnes
- 18Lucas João
- 21Akpan
- 32Conway
- Referee:
- Tony Harrington
- Attendance:
- 11,969
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home63%
- Away37%
- Shots
- Home22
- Away16
- Shots on Target
- Home5
- Away5
- Corners
- Home10
- Away4
- Fouls
- Home7
- Away4
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Brentford 1, Blackburn Rovers 3.
Post update
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Daniel Bentley.
Post update
Attempt saved. Elliott Bennett (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top left corner. Assisted by Craig Conway.
Post update
Foul by Florian Jozefzoon (Brentford).
Post update
Ryan Nyambe (Blackburn Rovers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Attempt blocked. Darragh Lenihan (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Craig Conway.
Post update
Attempt missed. Craig Conway (Blackburn Rovers) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left following a corner.
Post update
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Nico Yennaris.
Post update
Attempt blocked. Lucas João (Blackburn Rovers) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Marvin Emnes.
Post update
Attempt missed. Marvin Emnes (Blackburn Rovers) left footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Jason Lowe with a headed pass.
Post update
Attempt blocked. Marvin Emnes (Blackburn Rovers) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Substitution
Substitution, Brentford. Florian Jozefzoon replaces Sergi Canos.
Goal!
Goal! Brentford 1, Blackburn Rovers 3. Craig Conway (Blackburn Rovers) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the high centre of the goal.
Dismissal
Second yellow card to Harlee Dean (Brentford) for a bad foul.
Post update
Penalty conceded by Harlee Dean (Brentford) after a foul in the penalty area.
Post update
Penalty Blackburn Rovers. Marvin Emnes draws a foul in the penalty area.
Post update
Harlee Dean (Brentford) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Post update
Foul by Lucas João (Blackburn Rovers).
Post update
Corner, Blackburn Rovers. Conceded by Andreas Bjelland.
Comments
Join the conversation
On the Forest HYS you said that Forest deserved to go down and Blackburn are a better team and deserved to stay up, but here it's the opposite.
You're on every sporting HYS running every one of them down.
You think you're clever and witty but all you are is an uneducated unloved lonely little boy.
GET A LIFE SADDO.
Coventry - Premier to League 2 - 3 relegations
Blackburn - Premier to League 1 - 2 relegations
Orient - Top of League One to non-league in 3 years.
I feel sorry for the fans and for those people who put their money into the club in the 80s and 90s to get it to the top.
You're a couple of idiots who thought this would be a 'get rich quick' scheme
You treated this great club like a corner shop & sold off everything that wasn't bolted down & raided it like a piggy bank
I don't support Rovers but greatly respect them for helping nurture the likes of Shearer & Co
Sympathies with the fans
Rovers will be back - 30 years ago Burnley almost dropped out of the league.
Bigger picture - money had killed the sport from top to bottom; the Venkys are one aspect amongst many.
Oh for the Lancashire-dominated days of the maximum wage.
The third tier looms
'95 seems a distant memory
Of Shearer, Sutton and Marlon Broomes
The Venkys have managed
To fix what was not broke
Leaving genuine fans
To choke and choke and choke
9 managers since Sam
and 8 have failed
Kean, Berg and Coyle
All were not the Man
You can come back stronger
Times will be merry
For next seasons derby
Is a short trip to Bury
Things need to change.
Blackburn are a great club with a great history. We might not always be good neighbours but I for one know this is only a temporary setback. Difficult to say but "Come on you Rovers".
'We didn't know you could get relegated' - The Raos
'We will sign Ronaldinho' - The Raos
'We sacked Allardyce because he wasn't the man to bring us champions league football' - The Raos