Neil Smillie in action against Derby County.
Image by: The Argus
In September, newly-relegated Brighton & Hove Albion halted a run of three straight defeats in Division Two with a 1-0 success over Derby County at the Goldstone.Gordon Smith converted the winner via a spot kick and was on the scoresheet again in the return fixture in March. Ex-Albion boss Peter Taylor was experiencing a relegation struggle with the Rams, a battle his side ultimately lost, with a 20th place finish.
He dropped skipper Archie Gemmill and three other first team players and was unable to stop Chris Cattlin's Seagulls winning convincingly at the Baseball Ground.
Steve Penney opened the scoring, turning Steve Buckle inside out before a fine far post finish on 54 minutes. Striker Alan Young was one of three Youngs playing for Brighton on the day, and he latched onto Gary Howlett’s pass to fire home eight minutes later.
Then Gordon Smith signed off with his final goal for the Seagulls, rifling the ball high into the net from Danny Wilson’s cross service. The 3-0 win helped Brighton to a ninth-place finish.
LATEST NEWS FROM SEAGULLS.CO.UK
- 2015/16 TRAVEL ZONE CONFIRMED
- PREVIEW: ALBION V DERBY
- STEPHENS: DERBY DEFEAT CHANGES NOTHING
- BOLTON IN NUMBERS
- THE MONTH AHEAD: MARCH
1983/84 season's highs and lowsAugust: Brighton lost 1-0 to Real Madrid in a pre-season tournament in Spain.
September: There is significant crowd trouble in Brighton's 2-1 home defeat by Chelsea.
October: Albion defeat Charlton Athletic 7-0 with a Jimmy Case hat-trick, but boss Jimmy Melia departs soon after.
November: New manager Chris Cattlin gets one over his former side Huddersfield, as a 3-1 win takes Brighton up to 12th.
December: It's a happy Boxing Day as Wilson and Neil Smillie get the goals in a 2-0 win at Crystal Palace.
January: Brighton shock the football world with a surprisingly comfortable 2-0 victory over Liverpool in the FA Cup.
February: No return trip to Wembley as the Seagulls crashed out of the competition, losing 3-1 at Watford.
March: Despite generally good form in the month, Brighton surrender a half-time lead to lose 5-1 at Portsmouth, in Willie Young's last game for the club.
April: Scorers Alan Young, Terry Connor and Eric Young send Seagulls fans home happy after a 3-1 win over archrivals Crystal Palace during Easter.
May: Kevin Keegan scores in his final league game before retirement, in a 3-1 win over Brighton at St James' Park.
Born on this day
Craig Mackail-Smith was born on 25th February 1984, the day Brighton lost 3-1 at Sheffield Wednesday in a Division Two match.
[h=3]ALBION V DERBY
[/h]TUESDAY 3RD MARCH, KICK-OFF 7.45PM
[h=3]ALBION V WOLVES
[/h]SATURDAY 14TH MARCH, KICK-OFF 3PM
[h=3]ALBION V NORWICH CITY
[/h]FRIDAY 3RD APRIL, KICK-OFF 3PM
Original article