Match report

My impressions from last night's match were that we got the tactics wrong on the night. We certainly got our approach to the game totally wrong which culminated in the first goal being conceded simply by giving Cox so much time and space, he could blast it into the far top corner unimpeded.

Another observation is that they roasted us on the wings. They were practically running the length of the pitch and able to knock in crosses for us to deal with.

Brighton's approach was to pressure us on the ball, quickly counter on the wings and disturb our flow in the middle and they did it brilliantly. Don't get me wrong, they're a young side (I thought their keeper was their mascot!) and aren't as good as the scoreline suggests. We made them look good but on another night, we could have come and won that game 4-0.

I feel that the conditions didn't help our game but that is no excuse. They seemed to have mure urgency in their game, more drive to get forward and the desire to win.

Our boys were far too polite and were trying to pass the ball into the net. We played lots of nice little triangles toward the end of the first half and looked quite threatening for those last 10 minutes but with no end product. Like the rest of us 15 miles out in the away stand, they didn't want to be there shivering in the cold either.

The faults for the goals? Backing off too much for the first. The second was due to not having anyone on the posts. As the freekick was practically a cross from the corner, I was wondering who was going on the posts as they quickly took it and nodded it in at the far post. The third was basically not getting the ball out cleanly. Gueret blocked it 3 times and we still couldn't get it away.

Our goals were a bit difficult to make out with the crossbar obscuring things so you'll have to watch the highlights for a clearer picture.

Gueret - 7 - pulled off a fingertip save that stopped a certain top corner shot. Not at fault for the goals.
Amankwaah - 5 - Got forward fairly well, didn't really understand the fundamental concept of defending.
Austin - 7 - Solid as a rock. They did their homework and knew he was a weak link speed-wise but never let them get the better of him.
Tate - 6 - Seemed to be combining defence and midfield duties and it wasn't working.
Lawrence - 6 - Scored but didn't seem to impose his authority at the back.
Britton - 7 - They did their homework and had 3 on him when he went down the wing. Always a threat.
Pratley - 6 - Disappointed with his red but for all his running, there was little purpose.
Craney - 5 - Made the running but it just didn't happen for him.
Robinson - 6 - Had a good 10 minutes at the end of the first half but was fairly anonymous otherwise.
MacDonald - 5 - See Craney
Akinfenwa - 6 - They were worried about him. The ref was a little harsh on him at times.
Fallon - ? - With the second half being 15 miles away, it was hard to tell.
Jones - ? - See Fallon.

In summary, their keeper was rather dodgy. We hardly had any shots on target yet scored twice. I think if we'd tried our luck a little more, we'd have come away with a point or even all three. We let them come at us and paid the price. When we broke, they pressured us on the ball and dictated the game.

As I said previously, on another night, we'd have hammered them. Last night wasn't our night and I think it was more a blip than a real problem. A cold, wet Brighton on a Tuesday night isn't very inviting and we didn't fancy it.
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Brighton: Henderson, Adam Hinshelwood, Lynch, Rents, Whing, Mayo, Hammond, Cox (Santos 90), Fraser (Carpenter 72), Revell, Robinson (Gatting 82).
Subs Not Used: Kuipers, John.

Booked: Whing.

Goals: Cox 13, Revell 66, 81.

Swansea: Gueret, Amankwaah, Austin, Tate, Lawrence, Britton, Pratley, Craney, Robinson, MacDonald (Fallon 46), Akinfenwa (Jones 57).
Subs Not Used: Oakes, Watt, Butler.

Sent Off: Pratley (84).

Booked: Lawrence, Pratley.

Goals: Lawrence 59, Fallon 90.

Att: 5,209

Ref: K Friend (Leicestershire).