Brighton recently held an online Meet the Managers event where supporters could ask questions to head coaches Fabian Hurzeler and Dario Vidosic.
I just cannot resist the opportunity to get involved in these great and unique evenings. How many other Premier League clubs allows fans to interact directly with those at the top of the respective men and women’s playing departments?
Two questions were sent in from the Noble household, one to each head coach. I asked Hurzeler how he inspires the sort of comeback we saw in the second half against Spurs, and whether it is difficult to maintain those levels of fight every week.
My question for Vidosic was what he wanted to achieve this season with Brighton Women, after the side struggled so much for the past few years.
It has been a case of so far, so good in the WSL under Vidosic. The Albion sit fourth in the table after four games. With the men sixth in the Premier League and the Under 21s fourth in Premier League 2, Brighton are flying across all teams.
And so the online meeting kicked off at 6pm on Tuesday 15th October. Glenn Murray was on hosting duties, something he now comes across as a real expert at.
Throwing it out there, but Murray would make a great BBC Match of the Day presenter when Gary Lineker leaves the show….
We were all immersed in a digital Albion studio. Murray, Hurzeler and Vidosic were sat on high counter-type bar stools, we were told at the Amex. Backgrounds were imposed everywhere, I expect via green screen.
The movie-style use of technology did not end there. We were taken to three different venues in the Amex. From the home changing room, we were whisked down the tunnel like a Seagull and flown to the seafront to perch on top of the i360.
Everything was running smoothly until the last few seconds when Murray, Hurzeler and Vidosic found themselves suspended in mid-air with no i360.
There is always the risk of a technical hitch with events like this. It is part of the fun though. Not many people can say they have seen both the Albion head coach and second-highest ever goal scorer floating like Mary Poppins above the West Pier, can they?
The Q&A session itself was terrific. I nearly fell off my own stool when Murray said: “We have a question from Tony Noble.”
A message appeared on my screen, saying Unmute or Do Not Unmute. I unmuted and asked my questions live to the panel.
Hurzeler answered that he was instilling into the players to give their all for every minute in a relentless display of football. He wanted them to show supporters they were working hard and will not give up.
Vidosic said his main ambition was for improvement every week and to see where that takes the Albion. He added he was a little disappointed because the 1-0 weekend win over Crystal Palace was not an improvement from the previous victory over Aston Villa.
The 45 minutes flew by and was enjoyed by all taking part. Thank you to the Albion and Jugo for putting on it.
Tony Noble @Noble1844Tony
