Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. v Ipswich Town
Wednesday 21st January 2015 – 19:45
Falmer Stadium
Opening Thought - Jamma
They say that 2-0 is the most dangerous scoreline in football – just ask Burnley fans, who have seen their team throw away a two-goal lead twice in the space of a week. Jonathan Parr’s strike to see us home against Millwall, after we had threatened to let this position slip, could prove to be a pivotal moment in the season. Mick McCarthy joked in his post-match interview that he hadn’t necessarily brought the Norwegian on for his goalscoring prowess but his precise finish to wrap up the points was as clinical as Noel Hunt’s earlier double. Introducing Parr in a double change alongside Freddie Sears, whose flick provided the assist, turned out to have a crucial impact on the course of the game. Town had capitalised on the Lions’ evident nerves with two early goals and, if they had taken one of the numerous chances to claim that all-important third, could conceivably have racked up five or six. It was Millwall who struck next, though, just before half time, and, roared on by their notorious home support, started to apply some pressure. In the end, 3-1 was an accurate reflection of the balance of play, with the 3 points lifting us back into the top 2.
If we needed reminding, the last week has shown just how unpredictable the Championship is, as well as how quickly things can change in this league. This time last week, we were looking back on Saturday’s results thinking what a good weekend it had been for Derby. Having suffered successive 2-0 away defeats to Leeds and Middlesbrough a few weeks back, they looked to have turned things around with a professional 1-0 win at Portman Road, which, coupled with Bournemouth’s shock reverse at home to Norwich, saw them joint top of the table. Fast forward seven days, and they were the victims not only of a painful last-gasp loss to local rivals Nottingham Forest but also of a set of results in which the rest of the top 8 all won, with the sides below making up ground on the 3rd placed Rams. We know ourselves how easy it can be to start wondering ‘What if...’ when considering certain results in isolation. The reality is that, in a division as competitive as this one –and with no stand-out team this year – we just need to carry on going about our business, picking up points. McCarthy will be focusing on doing just that as we go again on Wednesday with a trip to the South coast.
The Opposition - Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. were founded in 1901 and in 1920, they were elected to the Football League's new Third Division in which they played until 1958 when they were promoted to Division 2. Within 5 years they had been relegated down to Division 4 and took another 3 years to achieve Division 3 status again.
Mike Bamber was the Chairman of Brighton from October 1972 until 1983. He famously brought Brian Clough to the club later that year and then appointed former England player Alan Mullery as manager. Mullery led the football club to the First Division in the 1978/79 season. The 1982/83 season saw a wildly inconsistent start for the club, with victories over Arsenal and Manchester United mixed in with heavy defeats, ending in relegation at the end of the season.
Despite their relegation, Brighton reached their first (and only to date) FA Cup final and drew 2–2 with Manchester United in the first match. Brighton's goals were scored by Gordon Smith and Gary Stevens. This was the final that featured the "miss" by Gordon Smith with virtually the last kick of the game in extra time prompting the well known phrase "and Smith must score" in effect it was actually a save by the Manchester United goalkeeper, Gary Bailey. In the replay Manchester United won 4–0.
In 1996, the club's financial situation was becoming increasingly precarious and the club's directors had come to a decision that the Goldstone Ground would have to be sold to pay off some of the club's huge debts. After a terrible start to 1996–97 saw Brighton stuck the bottom of the league by a considerable margin – they seemed certain to be relegated from the Football League just 14 years after they had almost won the FA Cup. They ended up being saved by a relative unknown Manager in Steve Gritt and a late goal in the last game of the season against the bottom side Hereford which kept their 77 year history of being part of the Football League intact.
A lifelong fan named d*ck Knight took control of the club in 1997 having led the fan pressure to oust the previous board following their sale of the club's Goldstone Ground to property developers.
The sale of the Goldstone ground went through in 1997 and this led to Brighton having to play some 70 miles away at Gillingham's Priestfield stadium. Micky Adams was appointed Brighton's manager in 1999. For the start of the 1999–2000 season The Seagulls moved back to Brighton and started playing their home games at Withdean Stadium, a converted athletics track owned by the local council.
2000–01 was Brighton's first successful season for 13 years. They were crowned champions of Division Three and promoted to Division Two. Brighton maintained their good form the following season being crowned Division Two champions, winning a second successive promotion, just five years after almost succumbing to the double threat of losing their Football League status and going out of business completely.
In the 2002/03 season they were relegated to what is now League 1, but came straight back up to what is now the Championship at the end of the following season and in 2005/06, once again Brighton found themselves going back down to League 1.
During May 2009, Knight was replaced as chairman at Brighton by Tony Bloom, who had successfully secured £93 million funding for the new Falmer Stadium and secured 75% shareholding at the club. Building of Falmer Stadium (known as the AMEX Stadium) was started in December 2008. On 31 May 2011 the club officially completed the handover and were given the keys to the stadium with an initial capacity of 22,374 seats, signifying the end of 12 years without a home. (Since then the ground has been developed to include additional facilities and capacity has increased to 30,750 by May 2013.)
They stayed in League 1 until the 2010/11 season when they achieved promotion back to the Football Championship where they have played for the past 3 seasons, Last year achieving a playoff spot with a 6th place finish.
One To Watch – Rohan Ince
The Seagulls’ squad has changed more than most in recent times, as a combination of their previous successes and a rapid turnover in managers has taken its toll. One player trying to take advantage of this and stake his claim as a First Team regular is young midfielder Rohan Ince.
A distant relative of Paul Ince, the 22-year-old came through the ranks at Chelsea. Finding chances hard to come by, and having taken in a loan spell at Yeovil, he joined up with Brighton’s U21 squad on a trial basis in 2012/13. He did enough to be offered a contract at the Amex Stadium and was involved with the First Team at the beginning of the following campaign. Ince made his debut for the club in the Capital One Cup that August and was soon a regular in the matchday squad. He went on to make 33 appearances in all competitions last season, with his performances earning him the Seagulls’ Young Player of the Season award. A box-to-box midfielder by trade, Ince’s qualities lie primarily in linking defence to attack but he is also capable of coming up with the odd sensational goal, as can be seen with this incredible volley against Swindon earlier this season:
The Gaffer – Chris Hughton
A product of Tottenham Hotspur's youth system, the left back made his debut in 1979. He was a member of the Tottenham side which won both the 1981 FA Cup and the 1982 FA Cup, the 1984 UEFA Cup and was runner-up in the 1982 Football League Cup and the 1987 FA Cup. He played 398 games for Tottenham in all competitions, scoring 19 goals and is considered one of the best full-backs to have played for the club.
In November 1990 West Ham United signed Hughton, initially on loan, then on a free transfer. He played two seasons at West Ham, making 43 appearances in all competitions, helping them win promotion from the Division Two in 1991.
In 1992 he signed for Brentford, again on a free transfer. He played one season for Brentford, before retiring aged 34.
Though being born in England, Hughton qualified to play for the Republic of Ireland as the son of an Irish mother and a Ghanaian father, becoming the first mixed-race player to represent the country. He won 53 caps for the Republic from 1979 to 1991.
Hughton was awarded a testimonial, staged on 29 May 1995 at Lansdowne Road.
He served as the national team's assistant manager under Brian Kerr, from February 2003 to October 2005.
From June 1993 to October 2007, Hughton was a coach at Tottenham Hotspur, initially in charge of the under-21 team, then the reserve side in 1999, being promoted to the first team two years later. In his time at Spurs, he served under ten different managers. He also served as caretaker manager on two separate occasions. On 25 October 2007, Hughton was dismissed as assistant manager along with then manager Martin Jol.
On 22 February 2008, he was appointed first team coach at Newcastle United.
On 8 September 2008, Hughton was named caretaker manager of Newcastle following the departures of Kevin Keegan. Hughton stood down as caretaker and was replaced on a temporary basis by Joe Kinnear. Hughton was promoted to Assistant Manager after the Magpies appointed Colin Calderwood as First-Team Coach on 26 January 2009. In February, Kinnear took ill before a game and Hughton took charge. In the week following it was revealed that Kinnear needed a heart bypass operation and that Hughton along with Colin Calderwood and Paul Barron would have to take charge of the team for the next few weeks and possibly months. However after a number of defeats Newcastle decided to appoint Alan Shearer as interim manager until the end of the season.
During the off-season of 2009, owner Mike Ashley announced he was selling the club, Hughton was again left with the job of caretaker manager, when the club failed to further secure the services of Alan Shearer.
Newcastle's unbeaten start of the new season which saw Hughton win successive manager of the month awards for August and September and then again in November, resulting in the board naming him as the new permanent manager of the club, after two stints as caretaker.
On 5 April 2010, Newcastle, under Hughton's control, confirmed their promotion back to the Premier League after just one season away. Newcastle were unbeaten at home for the entire 2009–10 season including both cup competitions, clinching promotion in record time.
Hughton received praise for his calm management style to stabilise the club, shrewd signings and guiding Newcastle back to the Premier League. Despite leading his newly promoted side to healthy ninth place by the end of October, unrest came when star player Andy Carroll was arrested for assault.
Following a defeat at West Brom in December, Hughton became the first Premier League manager of the 2010–11 season to lose his job, as he was dismissed by Managing Director Derek Llambias.
The decision was ill received by the players and the supporters, with many key figures in trhe game condemming the action. The club stated that "an individual with more managerial experience [was] needed to take the club forward". Before the match against Liverpool, on 11 December, campaigners from United For Newcastle organised a protest outside St James' Park as an opportunity for supporters to thank Hughton and to show their anger towards Ashley's decision.
After media speculation linking Hughton with a variety of clubs, Hughton was appointed manager of Championship club and League Cup holders Birmingham City in June 2011. In the club's first European campaign for 50 years, he led them into the group stages of the Europa League. During October, Birmingham won four and drew one of their League matches, an achievement for which Hughton was named Championship Manager of the Month. Hughton guided the Blues to a 4th placed finish in the Championship, qualifying for the play-offs, where they lost over the two legs of the Semi Final against Blackpool.
At the end of the 2011–12 season Birmingham gave Norwich City permission to talk to Hughton about their vacant managerial post, and he signed for the Canaries on 7 June 2012.
His first league game in charge was against Fulham, where Norwich lost, although this result was followed by memorable league victories against both Arsenal and Manchester United, as well as a League Cup victory against Tottenham Hotspur. Norwich however experienced bad form throughout the winter and towards the end of the season. Having battled against relegation for the whole of the season, Hughton's first season in charge saw them finish in 11th place.
On 6 April 2014, Norwich City announced they had "parted company" with Hughton with immediate effect. At the time of his departure Norwich were in 17th place in the Premier League.
Since leaving Norwich, Hughton has been offered, and rejected, assistant manager roles at various Premier League clubs.
On 31 December 2014, Hughton was announced as the new man in charge of Championship side Brighton & Hove Albion on a three-and-a-half-year contract.
Past Match - Video Highlights - Trev
Trev's Trivia
Terry Connor Assistant Manager Ipswich 2012-present and Brighton Player 1983-1987
Mauricio Tarrico Ipswich 1994-1999 and Brighton Player 2010-2012
Nicky Forster Ipswich 2005-2006 and Brighton Player 2007-2010
Media Watch - K L Blue
From Greenun24
Stat TimeHotshot Noel Hunt proves he can ease Ipswich Town’s striker shortage
Two-goal hero Noel Hunt is confident he can ease the pressure on a depleted Town side, following Saturday’s 3-1 win at struggling Millwall.
Hunt scored two poacher’s goals in the opening 14 minutes, on his first start for the club, to fire Town back into second place, following Derby County’s shock 2-1 home defeat to Nottingham Forest. Jonathan Parr scored the third to wrap up victory.
The 32-year-old has now scored three goals for the Blues, including his last-gasp winner at Charlton, on his debut, in November.
The striker was given the nod on Saturday, ahead of new signing Freddie Sears, with David McGoldrick sidelined with an injury he sustained in the FA Cup defeat to Southampton on Wednesday evening. Teddy Bishop, Dean Gerken, Luke Hyam and Cole Skuse also missed Saturday’s game.
Manager Mick McCarthy hopes McGoldrick will be fit to return to the fold at Brighton on Wednesday, but Hunt’s impact may have alleviated any urgent need to rush the former Nottingham Forest striker back.
“We have got to be able to do what the manager asks of us and if that means going in goal, I will go in goal,” joked Hunt.
“But it was nice to get up-front and play with Murph, he played a big part in my two goals.”
Asked if he would prefer to play as a striker in a 4-4-2 formation, Hunt added: “Yeah, I have played there all my career and it was good to get a couple of goals, but I am sure Murph, or whoever else had been presented with the chances, would have scored them too.”
Hunt’s last start before Saturday’s clash was, ironically, at Millwall, for Leeds, on the opening day of the season.
Then, the former Reading man was substituted early in the second half as the Lions prevailed 2-0, but it was a different story on Saturday for the striker, who paid tribute to assistant manager Terry Connor.
“Terry has worked a lot on my finishing, we had a good chat about goals yesterday. It was nice to give something back,” said Hunt.
“A couple of chances did not fall my way and David Forde made a good save. I’ll take two though, I’m not greedy.”
Meanwhile, McCarthy refused to be drawn on stories linking Town with a loan move for Leeds striker Billy Sharp.
The 28-year-old made a substitute appearance in the Whites’ 1-1 draw against Birmingham on Saturday, but it is thought discussions have taken place between the two clubs over a possible deal.
When asked about Sharp on Saturday, McCarthy said: “Unless I said we were doing something with him (Sharp) I wouldn’t comment because he’s Leeds’ player.”
Head to Head
Brighton Wins............20…………....33.33%
Ipswich Wins.............28………......46.67%
Draws.....................12……………..20.00%
Brighton Goals...........87 (average 1.45 goals per match)
Ipswich Goals...........104 (average 1.73 goals per match)
Head to Head at Brighton
Brighton Wins..............14…………...48.28%
Ipswich Wins...............8…........27.59%
Draws.......................7…………..24.14%
Brighton Goals...........55 (average 1.90 goals per match)
Ipswich Goals............35 (average 1.21 goals per match)
The Predicted Teams
Brighton & Hove Albion
13 Stockdale
14 Calderon
03 Greer
33 Halford
30 Bennett
22 Holla
24 Ince
27 March
18 Forster-Caskey
09 Baldock
12 Mackail-Smith
Ipswich Town
33 Bialkowski
04 Chambers
05 Smith
06 Berra
03 Mings
11 Anderson
18 Tabb
17 Bru
12 S Hunt
16 N Hunt
09 Murphy
Match Referee – Keith Stroud
Final Thought - Frosty
Well we got the result we wanted on our little Safari to London as the Lions were finally put away after clawing one goal back late in the first half. (Ok, even I admit that sounded pathetic)
This week it’s off to the seaside, which sounds really summer like but as the temperatures are supposed to in the vicinity of between 2 and 4 degrees Celsius on Wednesday I guess a trip to the beach is only for the hardy or the completely retarded which is why I chose to litter this preview with pictures of Sand and lovely blue skies.
It’s a strange Round 27 of the fixtures this week with matches being spread over 6 days starting with Bournemouth paying a visit to Leeds on Tuesday and Middlesbrough hosting Cardiff. We step up to the plate the following day, whilst the name we never speak hosts Brentford on Saturday and Watford also goes to the Seaside but with a somewhat easier task at hand against the hapless Blackpool.
It wont be until the 26th of January that we know where we will settle on the table as that is when Derby looks to bounce back from the little hiccup that was Forest when they host Blackburn.
Brighton to me are a lot trickier opposition than they might have been a month ago under the charge of Sami Hyypia. Since he resigned from the Seagulls on the 22nd December and was replaced by another former bird manager in Chris Haughton, Brighton have won three and lost one match.
I wonder how Brighton will approach this match and equally what line up they may wheel out this Wednesday as on Sunday a virtual full house is assured as Arsenal visit Falmer Stadium in an FA Cup 4th round tie.
For us after this fixture it’s a decent 10 day break to catch our breath before a hectic February looms with 5 games in one 17 day period.
To those of you travelling to Brighton, have a great evening and a safe trip, I too will probably be at the beach as for some reason my pool has a bloody crack in it.
BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION 1 IPSWICH TOWN 2
(and they don't).
) making up a 5 man midfield? (Although Anderson would have cause for complaint, having had one of his best games on Sat). We certainly looked more lively against S'otton when reverting to this formation - but, as ever, it's wait and see.
