Brentford boss Dean Smith said his side’s 3-1 win over derby rivals Fulham was proof of the “incredible togetherness” at the club.

And he added he knew there would be a reaction after watching his players train after the disappointment of losing a 2-0 lead at QPR in the dying minutes on Monday.

“I thought we did a lot very well at Rangers so I wasn’t going to lose my head over the last 95 seconds. I knew they had put that result to bed when they trained because they are a great group,” he said.

Goals from Sergi Canos, Romaine Sawyers and Ollie Watkins cancelled out Neeskens Kebano’s first-half strike, but the Cottagers’ mission grew tougher when Sheyi Ojo saw red for a second booking just before the hour mark.

And Smith hailed his side’s “perfect response” and assured final few minutes as they saw the game out to leapfrog their local rivals to move into 11th.

“We knew that if we pressed Fulham high they would make mistakes and as we did that our belief grew. The third goal was all about our knowledge and game management so it was very pleasing,” he said.

“We are nearing the midway stage now so if we remain as consistent as we have been, show the aggression and intensity we did today and turn some of the draws into wins, then we will maintain our push.”

He added: “There’s an incredible togetherness about this football club and that will be important to us in the months ahead. That’s why it’s important to consider performances as well as results.”

Frustrated Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic admitted his side lacked the clinical edge to build on their early advantage.

“We played well for 45 minutes, should have scored more but then gave them an easy goal. We know Brentford and they know us so it was always going to be back and forwards,” he said.

“We started the second half very sloppy and they scored. Then we lose a player to a second yellow and that was one of the crucial decisions in the game. With a player less it got complicated for us, but we pushed and tried to force things but we didn’t show enough energy to change the situation.”

Jokanovic said his side lacked a champion’s instinct in the end to end derby atmosphere, but insisted: “I picked team that I thought was best for my team. We talk about this situation so many times but at the moment I pick what I believe in and what I am comfortable with.

“We created so many problems for ourselves in the last 45 minutes and once they got the second goal we lacked something to help us find a way back into the game.”