Chris Hughton hailed Bobby Zamora's winner - his first for Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex since his return to the club - as a special goal.Zamora came off the bench to score a late winner for the second game in a row, as Albion beat Bristol City 2-1, and Hughton felt it was an emotional moment for the majority of those inside the stadium.
The Albion boss, who also praised his side's character, said, "It was a special goal for many reasons, not least the timing, as I felt it was nothing less than what we deserved. It was nice to get a home win after a really good win at Elland Road.
"There were a lot of emotions in this game. Going from half time in a game that we should have been winning with the opportunities we had; to then coming back to 1-1; and then looking like we could lose it.
"We needed David Stockdale to make a couple of really good saves for us at 1-1, then we went to Bobby scoring, which was very emotional.
"From the position that he was in I did not think that Bobby was going to score, so probably the elation was more because it was a little bit of a surprise.
"It was an awkward bounce but Bobby is used to being in the penalty box and we have certainly been grateful for that in the last two games.
"Bobby's situation at this club is different to a lot of other players. He is renowned for his previous time here. He went on to play in the Premier League but here is somewhere where people relate to him and that is why it was such a big thing, certainly for the supporters.
"I knew that as soon as I came to the club and the first time his name was mentioned. He did a great job here in his first spell, and we hope he continues to do that.
"He is an experienced player who is used to being in positions in the box and he has that quality. He is a different type of player than what he was some years ago but he has adapted his game and he knows best what type of player that he is."
LATEST NEWS FROM*SEAGULLS.CO.UK
- REPORT: ALBION 2 BRISTOL CITY 1
- HALLOWEEN GHOST TOUR AT THE AMEX
- ROBERTS AND STOCKO PODCAST OUT NOW!
- GALLERY: BRISTOL CITY
- ALBION END OCTOBER HOODOO
Hughton also recognised the contribution of Zamora's teammates, adding, "It's not just Bobby though. It is the team that have won us the four extra points [in the last two games]."If we didn't get the first goal then Bobby's goal doesn't become a winner. I was delighted for Sam because he is running as hard as anybody. I thought he'd got his goal in the first half - they worked ever so hard to clear that one off the line - but he kept going and he deserved it when it came.
"We managed to get back into the game, through what I thought was a really excellent goal and we kept pushing.
"When you keep pushing you can leave yourselves open a touch and Bristol City were too good a side for us to take chances against. It was a game that, while we did not deserve to lose, it could have gone either way in the end.
"On Saturday I felt more comfortable than I did today. Bristol City are a good side, as they showed on Friday night at home to Nottingham Forest, so we knew what we were up against.
*
"Coming back to win gives a different type of confidence to the team. For a large part of the season we have been the team who has gone in front. It is good to go ahead and get early goals, but it also shows character to come from behind and I thought that we had to show a lot of that tonight."
Original article