Brentford boss Dean Smith said his young side came of age as they secured a 2-0 win over Leeds at Griffin Park.
Romaine Sawyers and Lasse Vibe did the damage for the Londoners as they dominated Leeds in a one-sided first half.
Garry Monk's side improved in the second half but the Bees held on to claim all three points.
"We were very professional after the break and it was the first time they looked like a group of men," said Smith.
He said the win was arguably their best performance during his time at the club, adding: "Because of the quality of the opposition, I think so yes.
"We showed composure, good movement and passing. All the boys were excellent in an outstanding first half. We made Rob Green make some good saves and I was pleased with the quality of the goals."
He singled out Sawyers for special praise after his impressive performance.
"If Rom keeps performing like that his detractors will get fewer and fewer. His first 70 minutes on Saturday were good but he was excellent for the 90 tonight," he said.
Smith also hailed centre-backs Harlee Dean and Yoann Barbet after they kept Leeds striker Chris Wood quiet all night, saying: "They were both fantastic and hardly gave him a sniff.
"Harlee was excellent in the air and he is getting better and better as a Championship player and as a captain."
Leeds boss Monk urged his players not to feel sorry for themselves or let the hard work of the season go to waste, saying: "We have another opportunity on Saturday and I know already from speaking to the lads at the end that they'll be ready to put on a performance.
"It's not often we have had to face back-to-back defeats this season, but we can't feel sorry for ourselves. We are still in a strong position, the same as we were two games ago.
"At the start of the season, nobody would have thought we would be where we are now. This group isn't prepared to let all of the hard work put in throughout the season go to waste."
But he had praise for Brentford, adding: "Credit to them and how they played because they deserved the win. I've watched a lot of Brentford this season and that's one of the best first-half displays I've seen from them. They made it very difficult for us.
"They got the two goals which made it difficult, but we tried to respond and we had our chances. What we needed was for one of them to go in. It might have given us a chance to change the game, but it didn't and no excuses."
