Being on the other side of the world is proving a real eye opener to the dedication all our Seagulls Down Under fans go through when it comes to watching Brighton.
I am currently in New Zealand and so when I went to bed on the night of Saturday 27th January, I set everything to wake up for the Albion’s FA Cup game at Sheffield United which would kick off at 4am local time here.
Still suffering from jetlag and therefore often waking up in the middle of the night, I did not think there was any chance of oversleeping when I closed my eyes and settled down to bed.
You can probably guess what happened next. By the time I woke up, Brighton and the Blades had been involved in a seven-goal thriller won 5-2 by the men in green and black.
Discovering we were safely into round five of the FA Cup was a brilliant way to start the day, even if I was gutted to have missed keeping up with the action from Bramall Lane live.
After waiting for the extended highlights to appear on the Albion website, I was able to watch the game back. Doing so whilst already knowing the outcome felt weird; Sheffield United v Brighton was the first Albion game I had not followed as happened in a long, long time.
Technology does at least mean it is easy to catch up and feel a part of it, even if that is just through highlights. Brighton supporters living in Australia and New Zealand 30 years ago would have enjoyed no such luxuries.
Some of the goals the Albion scored in this meeting between last season’s two beaten semi finalists were superb and, bar that funny five minutes before half time, Brighton deserved to win by such a convincing margin.
A great early cross from Pascal Gross found the head of Evan Ferguson, who nodded into the net. However, the flag correctly went up against Gross after he moved a little too soon into an offside position during the build up.
Ferguson appeared to have a really good game and he next got a shot away which flew just over the bar after some fine work by Billy Gilmour to make the chance happen.
The Albion got the goal their dominance deserved when Facundo Buonanotte took the ball on his right, shifted to his left and then fired an Exocet Missle into the top corner from 35 yards.
It was Buonanotte’s first FA Cup goal and boy what a way to start. Hopefully, we see him score many more in the competition for the Seagulls.
Shortly after and Joao Pedro was brought down in the Sheffield United box, giving the Albion a penalty. Blades goalkeeper Ivo Grbic dived right and Pedro went left to convert his 12th spot kick in English football. What a phenomenal record.
Pedro was looking in the mood for goals and he next fired a shot a little too high. The highlights at this point suggested it would be a case of how many goals could the Albion rack up on their way to a comfortable victory.
But then came that funny five minutes. A Sheffield United break down the right and cross into the box was initially pushed away by Bart Verbruggen.
However, the ball fell straight at the feet of Gustavo Hamer who fired into the Brighton net to half the deficit. Worse was to come in the eighth minute of first half stoppage time when William Osula headed the Blades level.
For all the positive attacking football the Albion had played, De Zerbi would not have been happy with the way those two late goals were conceded.
It surely made for an interesting team talk from our passionate Italian head coach, before the players returned to the pitch aiming to right the wrongs of the way the half ended.
The Albion went straight on the attack and a series of small incidents in the Sheffield United area eventually led to Jaden Bogle producing a clear handball as he rose to challenge Ferguson in the air.
Pedro once again was so cool, stepping up, placing the ball on the spot and converting another successful penalty to put Brighton back into the lead.
Bogle almost made up for his handball when racing forward and looking certain to score until Igor Julio appeared on the scene to make a great challenge, forcing the ball out of play.
Brighton needed another goal and it arrived via one of their normal passing moves. Jan Paul van Hecke ended up slipping a ball into Pedro, he took a touch and fired into the bottom corner to complete his hat-trick and ensure the match ball was heading back to Sussex.
Danny Welbeck provided the icing on the cake with a super individual goal in the 97th minute. Running down the flank, he held off the challenge of a home defender to bury a shot beyond Grbic.
There was still time for Sheffield United to almost pull another back. James McAtee hit the underside of the Albion crossbar with a high-speed effort which dropped straight down onto the line.
Fortunately, technology ruled that the ball was only two-thirds over the goal line. A close call helping Brighton avoid conceding three.
The draw for the fifth round of the FA Cup has since given Brighton a trip to Wolves. The Albion are now only two wins from Wembley; how good would it be to go back again for another semi final?
Hopefully, with a different result this time. And I certainly will not be sleeping through a trip to Wembley!
Tony Noble @Noble1844Tony
Seagulls Best Ever Season Volume 2 charts Brighton’s record breaking 2022-23 campaign through the eyes of Tony Noble, an East Stand Upper season ticket holder at the American Express Stadium. It is available from Waterstones, WHSmith, Amazon Bookstore and all good bookshops as well as the Albion Superstore at the Amex and via this link.
