Brighton - Away Supporters' Guide
RTG’s totally and utterly (we hope) indispensable guide to this season’s away grounds.
THE OPPO – Brighton & Hove Albion
DATE – Saturday 12th February 2005
KO TIME – 3.00pm
Saturday's game takes Sunderland supporters travel to Brighton for the first time in over fifteen years, and our first ever visit to the Withdean Athletics Stadium.
THE GROUND – The Withdean Stadium, Brighton – click here and here for maps of the area - the circle shows where the ground is.
The Withdean Stadium seats only 7,000 supporters in total, with approximately 700 visiting supporters behind the east goal. And it's uncovered seating - so if it rains, you'll get wet (online weather forecast here).
EVERY match is all-ticket - a condition of the agreement made with the local council when the club moved to the ground; SAFC allocated tickets based on loyalty points so if you haven't got one by now, you won't be getting one at all. There are no cash sales at all on matchdays.
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT TRAVEL WITHIN THE BRIGHTON AREA!
Along with your match ticket, you should have received a voucher that you can use for either free or discounted travel for the final leg of your journey. There is an 'exclusion zone' for one mile around the ground and football supporters will not be able to park within that zone - but the travel voucher will pay for your Park & Ride bus journey to and from the ground.
GOING BY CAR?
A1 south then M1 south (or M18 > M1 if you prefer). Stay on the M1 till jcn 6A then pick up the M25. Stay on the M25 until jcn 8 and take the M23 then just head for Brighton.
Note: You will NOT be able to park within one mile of the ground! The club requests that drivers use either of the dedicated football park and ride services:
* Mill Road, off the A23/A27 junction
OR
* Mithras House, Lewes Road
After parking you catch a free bus to the ground - you just need to show your match ticket. The first buses to the ground leave at 12.30pm.
After the game, go to the pickup points on London Road to get a bus back to the appropriate car park. The last buses back to the car parks leave London Road 30 minutes after the final whistle.
Full details here.
GOING BY TRAIN?
SMB regular GavMackem says "Due to engineering works next weekend all trains stop at Three Bridges and there's a bus replacement service running to Brighton from there. It's going to add an hour onto the journey minimum, each way, so be warned."
Get up to date train times on 08457 484950.
A.L.S. COACH SERVICE
A Love Supreme are providing their usual coach service down to Brighton. The cost is £30pp and coaches leave the ALS shop (opposite the Stadium of Light) at 5am on the day. To book, either phone or fax 0191 565 4422 (Mon-Fri 9-5 and matchdays) - credit and debit cards accepted. Or go to the ALS shop and pay in person. Or reserve your place online - either email mail@a-love-supreme.com to tell them you want to book a place, or click here to book and pay online.
Reservations and refunds deadline 48 hours before departure.
STOPPING OVER?
Premier Lodge, North Street, Brighton, tel 087 0990 6340
Travelodge, Preston Road, Brighton, tel 0870 191 1517
Quality Hotel, West St, Brighton, tel 01273 220033
Or click here for further ideas.
SCRAN AND BOOZE
Some food is available inside the Withdean but NO ALCOHOL. The Sportsman pub at the rear of the north stand is amenable to away supporters but it'll be busy. Alternatively go into central Brighton for food or drink beforehand, or there are pubs close to Brighton mainline rail station.
LEND US A FIVER I’M OUT OF CASH
Plenty of cash machines in Brighton town centre.
LAST SEASON
4th out of 24 - promoted to The Championship via the playoffs, beating Bristol City in the playoff final.
THIS SEASON
18th out of 24 (@12.2.05)
P33 W10 D8 L15 F27 A42 Pts 38 GD -15
LAST MEETINGS
30.10.04 Sunderland 2 Brighton 0
05.10.91 Sunderland 4 Brighton 2
24.02.90 Sunderland 2 Brighton 1
25.11.89 Brighton 1 Sunderland 2
29.04.89 Sunderland 1 Brighton 0
26.11.88 Brighton 3 Sunderland 0
NEW STADIUM
Brighton are in the middle of a public enquiry as to whether or not they can build a 22,000 seater stadium at Falmer - but local residents have set up an action group to protest against the idea. Last year Brighton and Hove City Council approved an application from the club to install 2,000 temporary seats and play there for three more years.
But after a local resident spotted the legal loophole surrounding the council's failure to give a reason for the verdict, the process must start again.
The club will be allowed to carry on holding games at the ground while the new application is dealt with, which is expected to take a few weeks.
More news on Brighton's quest for a new stadium at the Clubs In Crisis website.
Credits: Brighton & Hove Albion official website, Soccerbase, www.multimap.com, BBC, AccuWeather, Gavin McAneney.
Sundrland 4-2 Watford
One of the major criticisms of The Lads this season is that their football has been, on the whole, fairly boring and slow-paced. It has been said that the midfield is too defensive, that the whole team lacks creativity and that the strikers don’t get enough goals. Today, however, the same side that most of this criticism has been leveled at, at least went some way to dispelling these theories.
And with McCarthy naming the same, apparently defensive side, that carved out a boring 1-1 draw away to Wolves just 8 days ago, it would have been a brave man to predict the outcome of the game. Robinson and Whitley once again took up their places in Midfield and Breen and Caldwell retained theirs in the centre of defence. But, although it was the same side as at Molineux just a week earlier it was an entirely different performance, almost from the very start of the match.
After just 10 minutes, Stewart, already looking bright up front, managed to latch onto a sublime Whitley long ball before seeing his brilliant volley saved by Jones. While this was the first glimmer, in this game, of Stewart’s recent upturn in form, the second, soon afterwards, would prove deadly. This coincided with the first good cross of the game, coming from Stephen Elliott who, after winning the ball down the right, placed the ball perfectly onto Stewart’s head allowing him to finish easily from just a few yards out. The difference between this and many other games this season was highlighted straight after the goal when, instead of sitting back, Sunderland went in search of a second. After a few half chances a fairly innocuous ball was picked up by Mcartney who made his way into the box before being flattened. It was probably one of the easiest penalty decisions referee Bates has ever had to make and one of the easiest ways for Stewart to grab his second goal of the afternoon. With this though, Sunderland did sit back, contributing to a fairly uneventful last quarter of an hour. Arca’s disallowed goal being the only action before the end of the first half.
This period, deficient of chances, was ended soon after half time as what can only be described as a hoof by McCartney looped its way over the flailing Watford keeper before Marcus Stewart sped in ahead of DeMerit to slot home for a well-deserved hat-trick. Much like after the first goal, Sunderland again went on the attack. Elliott and even Stephen Wright missed chances before Stewart’s replacement, Chris Brown got in on the action with 20 minutes to go. Robinson rose at the far post to head Whitehead’s corner back across goal into the path of Brown who tucked the ball home from a couple of yards and whilst this should have been game set and match that wasn’t quite the case. Although never in danger of altering the result of the game two late Watford goals certainly put a dampener on things. Bruce Dyer nabbed two goals in the last 15 minutes, both after lax defending , ensured the remaining Watford fans at least had something to cheer but, unsurprisingly, it wasn’t enough.
Man of the Match: Marcus Stewart, although Elliott must also take a lot of the credit.
Matthew Woolston
