Albion have dug themselves into a bit of a hole towards the wrong end of the early Championship table.
A good time then for a Gardner to get his hands dirty in the fight for midfield places.
That's Gary Gardner, to be more precise. The Aston Villa loanee is about to play a more prominent part in the Seagulls' quest to elevate themselves into the comfort zone.
It was Gardner's Villa colleague, Albion room-mate and close friend Joe Bennett who hogged the plaudits in Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Cardiff at the Amex.
Bennett's adventurous display, which could have been embellished by a hat-trick, earned the forward-thinking left-back the sponsor's man-of-the-match.
Gardner's polished full home debut on the right-side of Albion's midfield triangle was consequently overshadowed.
He completed a high percentage of passes. He dovetailed well with goalscorer Bruno, filling the space behind when the Spaniard rampaged into Cardiff territory.
Gardner was also one of the victims of David Marshall's excellence, bringing the best out of the Cardiff goalkeeper with a couple of shots from outside the box in the second half.
The versatile Gardner, who can play left or right, is certain to keep his place at Watford tomorrow with Jake Forster-Caskey suspended, possibly with Bennett on the same side of the pitch.
Bennett said: "He's a good lad. We have been mates for a few years. I went away with England (Under-19s and Under-20s) with him before I was at Villa, so I know him quite well. It's nice to have someone here that you know and can get along with.
"He played really well. He adds something different. He's got quality on the ball. You saw that with his passing.
"He can deliver those killer balls which cut teams open. If I make a run he is going to find me nine times out of ten."
Bennett scored the only goal of his career for Middlesbrough at Burnley in September 2011.
He could have quadrupled his tally against Cardiff. A first half shot flashed narrowly wide, then Marshall thwarted a close range header and another effort inside the box.
Bennett said: "He had a really good game when we played them at Villa (0-0 in February). That was the only thing that stopped us.
"I said to the lads I should have had three goals. The first chance in the first half was inches away.
"I was really frustrated with the header in the second half. I should have put that away. On a different day I should have had a couple of goals at least."
It is not often you see a left-back popping up inside the opposing penalty area with such regularity.
"It's the team that help me do that," Bennett said. "They keep hold of the ball and, when I make the runs, they normally find me. I was really pleased with my performance.
"It's probably the best I've played since I came to Brighton. Hopefully I can carry it on on Saturday.
"I've only been here a short amount of time but I really feel at home here and I am really comfortable on the pitch as well."
Bennett will feel more comfortable if Albion approach his reunion with Middlesbrough at the Amex later this month with a first League victory in seven secured against Watford.
He said: "I've seen them play a few times this season and they've been really good. It's going to be tough but hopefully we can get our season started.
"I would have taken a scrappy 1-0 win on Tuesday. We need a win at the weekend, we are not at the right end of the table at the moment.
"We need to climb that table as soon as possible and go into the international break on a high, having the three points."
GRAPHIC: Championship Team of the Week - Gameweek10 pic.twitter.com/Zr86uYmnho
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) October 2, 2014
Original article
A good time then for a Gardner to get his hands dirty in the fight for midfield places.
That's Gary Gardner, to be more precise. The Aston Villa loanee is about to play a more prominent part in the Seagulls' quest to elevate themselves into the comfort zone.
It was Gardner's Villa colleague, Albion room-mate and close friend Joe Bennett who hogged the plaudits in Tuesday's 1-1 draw against Cardiff at the Amex.
Bennett's adventurous display, which could have been embellished by a hat-trick, earned the forward-thinking left-back the sponsor's man-of-the-match.
Gardner's polished full home debut on the right-side of Albion's midfield triangle was consequently overshadowed.
He completed a high percentage of passes. He dovetailed well with goalscorer Bruno, filling the space behind when the Spaniard rampaged into Cardiff territory.
Gardner was also one of the victims of David Marshall's excellence, bringing the best out of the Cardiff goalkeeper with a couple of shots from outside the box in the second half.
The versatile Gardner, who can play left or right, is certain to keep his place at Watford tomorrow with Jake Forster-Caskey suspended, possibly with Bennett on the same side of the pitch.
Bennett said: "He's a good lad. We have been mates for a few years. I went away with England (Under-19s and Under-20s) with him before I was at Villa, so I know him quite well. It's nice to have someone here that you know and can get along with.
"He played really well. He adds something different. He's got quality on the ball. You saw that with his passing.
"He can deliver those killer balls which cut teams open. If I make a run he is going to find me nine times out of ten."
Bennett scored the only goal of his career for Middlesbrough at Burnley in September 2011.
He could have quadrupled his tally against Cardiff. A first half shot flashed narrowly wide, then Marshall thwarted a close range header and another effort inside the box.
Bennett said: "He had a really good game when we played them at Villa (0-0 in February). That was the only thing that stopped us.
"I said to the lads I should have had three goals. The first chance in the first half was inches away.
"I was really frustrated with the header in the second half. I should have put that away. On a different day I should have had a couple of goals at least."
It is not often you see a left-back popping up inside the opposing penalty area with such regularity.
"It's the team that help me do that," Bennett said. "They keep hold of the ball and, when I make the runs, they normally find me. I was really pleased with my performance.
"It's probably the best I've played since I came to Brighton. Hopefully I can carry it on on Saturday.
"I've only been here a short amount of time but I really feel at home here and I am really comfortable on the pitch as well."
Bennett will feel more comfortable if Albion approach his reunion with Middlesbrough at the Amex later this month with a first League victory in seven secured against Watford.
He said: "I've seen them play a few times this season and they've been really good. It's going to be tough but hopefully we can get our season started.
"I would have taken a scrappy 1-0 win on Tuesday. We need a win at the weekend, we are not at the right end of the table at the moment.
"We need to climb that table as soon as possible and go into the international break on a high, having the three points."
GRAPHIC: Championship Team of the Week - Gameweek10 pic.twitter.com/Zr86uYmnho
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) October 2, 2014
Original article