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Talking Point: Hull away the perfect tie for Albion [The Argus]



Newshound

Brighton 8049
Jun 5, 2011
18,359
The collective groan could be heard across Sussex when the FA Cup third round draw was made, except in a corner of East Brighton.
Whitehawk were thrilled by the carrot of a trip to Everton, which unfortunately did not come to fruition in their second round replay against Dagenham and Redbridge.
As for Albion, they pulled out a stinker. The worst of both worlds. Away from home against a side from the same division.
Not now. Saturday's tie against Hull at the KC Stadium has suddenly become an ideal fixture at a perfect time.
Groundsman Steve Winterburn and his hard-working team at the Amex must be grateful.
Chris Hughton and his aching, injury-hit promotion-chasers should be celebrating as well.
The third round draw, on December 7, came at the end of a difficult period for Winterburn and his colleagues.
Birmingham visited on November 28. Two days later an under-21s game against Arsenal was staged at the Amex (Albion are obliged to play some games at their designated home ground in the under-21s Premier League).
Winterburn, his colleagues and the pitch they take such pride in barely had time to recover from that double-header before another.
The match against Charlton on December 5 was followed 24 hours later by an historic outing on the treasured turf for the ladies team, in torrential rain against the same opponents.
Back-to-back Rugby World Cup matches in September, an under-21s game against West Ham in early November and an England under-21s fixture in mid-November have also added to the cumulative wear and tear.
So you can sympathise with Winterburn over the noticeable deterioration in the pitch when Albion entertained Middlesbrough before Christmas.
Hughton, asked about it a couple of days later, said the pitch was "not at its best".
The issue resurfaced following the New Year's Day defeat by Wolves, played within three days of another home match against Ipswich.
Bruno called the pitch "bad". Team-mate Beram Kayal agreed and declared: "It doesn't help us play our normal game."
Of course, Albion's hat-trick of home defeats, after winning eight of the previous ten and drawing the other two, cannot be blamed on the poor condition of the pitch.
It can, however, be cited as a contributing factor. It is not the same for both sides, not when one team (Wolves) are putting ten men behind the ball and the other (Albion) are trying to play through the pitch to break them down.
Thank goodness then Albion were not drawn at home in the FA Cup this weekend. Winterburn and his co-workers now have a meaningful break of 22 days between the visit of Wolves and the next home game against Huddersfield (assuming the FA Cup tie with Hull does not go to a replay) to get the pitch in better shape.
Hughton has rather less time than that but a still valuable 11 days between the Wolves setback and the return to Championship action at Rotherham next week to rest players like Bruno, Kayal and Dale Stephens, who have been on the go for 90 minutes in virtually every game all season.
The chronic injury problems encountered by the Seagulls have restricted Hughton's ability to rotate the squad to compensate for the heavy workload.
They have also become too dependent, in particular, on Kayal and Stephens. Aitor Karanka, manager of leaders Middlesbrough, had the luxury of resting key central midfielder Chris Leadbitter ahead of the trip to the Amex without it adversely affecting the team's performance at home to Burnley four days earlier.
The Hull game gives Hughton the chance to rest Kayal, Stephens, Bruno and others busy of late like Jamie Murphy.
Albion and Hull were among the four balls left in the third round draw. The others were Norwich and Manchester City.
If the Seagulls had faced instead a trip to the Etihad, Hughton would have run the risk of a hammering by fielding a fringe side, or embarrassment against lower League opposition. Nobody will be too pertburbed if Albion go out narrowly to Hull.
They actually have a decent chance of progressing, because Hull are in the same boat, three points and a place above them in the Championship promotion race.
With their former Premier League resources and fewer pivotal injuries to cope with, Steve Bruce will be in a stronger position than Hughton to make the most of his squad.
Even so, an FA Cup tie between Hull Reserves and Albion Reserves all of a sudden feels rather convenient.

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