Bristol City O Brighton 2
Once again the Seagulls emulated Fulham with a 2-0 away win against an aspiring side. The match will be remembered for the goal of Steve Sidwell. The ex Fulham man was only a yard or so in the centre circle when he noted the City keeper Richard O’Donnell was off the line and duly lobbed him .This is the most exquisite of skills. .Jamie Murphy cut in from the left and added the second to put the game beyond the Robins.
After the game I had my normal long chat with Alan Tanner. Fulham are on the edge of the play offs, Brighton second. Alan said Fulham have a strong squad . Including those not starting yesterday , they can field an eleven that would probably stay up : Bettinelli, Sessignon, Madl, Ream, Odoi: Kebano, Christennsen , Jezebed, Ayite: Woodrow , Smith. The Albion have a few to return, notably our most influential player Kayal, Solly March is now fit, Goldston and Huhnemeier can play in central defence whilst Liam Rosenior can play on the left. One asset is that Brighton hang onto their players. Dale Stephens will be out of contract at the end of the season but we still resisted a £7m bid. Would Fulham refuse £15m for Tom Cairney in January?
Brighton have the meaner defence though lately Fulham have not been conceding Fulham’s fullbacks, Malone and Fredericks bomb forward but gaps are left to exploit when they do . I believe both teams will be in the mix come May.
One aspect of modern football I don’t like is that almost every game there a minute ‘s silence for someone who passed away This used to be reserved for a passing of figure that had made a huge effect on football or life…not the father of Anthony Knockaert For me grief is private not an occasion to hold up publically after Sidwell’s goal Knockaert’s jersey , he being absent for compassionate grounds . There is so much saturation coverage of football but late night mature discussion of such issues and others, homophobia, agents , could well be of interest. I did hear a friend of mine participate in the Allardyce dismissal saga with Edwina Currie and Max Mosley and make some very good points on the Press . Still on coverage Danny Higginbotham is emerging from the pack as an incisive analyst . He picked up on poor defending when Murphy was not shown the line but cut inside. Peter Beagrie is another pundit who is well informed on the Championship. The only thing one does miss is a lightness of touch . Kelly Yates does not do it for me as presenter but generally the SKY coverage is first rate .
Once again we have yet another tedious international break On Frdiay week Brighton have a big one against Villa whilst Fulham play Sheffield Wedensaday the following day Some of the early runners, Huddersfield, Norwich and BristolCity are falling away but I fully expect Brighton and Fulham to maintain their momentum.
