Hinshelwood era to blame for the fall of Brighton

Grimsby Town 2 Brighton and Hove Albion

The pitch invasion by two sets of relegated fans on the final whistle did not deserve to be greeted by police horses. One Brighton supporter was carrying an inflatable killer whale, while a large plastic cod was being waved among the Grimsby fans behind their goal.

The 2,500 who had come from England's most stylish seaside resort to an altogether more workmanlike coast, left Blundell Park applauding their players, although as they drifted south the great question was what might have happened had Steve Coppell been appointed sooner.

This was the 41st and final point Brighton had picked up in 34 matches under Coppell; a ratio which would have seen Albion comfortably safe over the course of a season. Ultimately what relegated them was not Ade Akinbiyi's goal at the Britannia Stadium nor their failure to overcome the First Division's bottom side but the 10 successive defeats under Martin Hinshelwood, a short-lived but disastrous attempt to replace Peter Taylor from within.

Taylor, who oversaw Brighton's second successive promotion last season, was at Blundell Park yesterday and his prediction that their lack of resources would be an insurmountable handicap to First Division survival has been vindicated. Coppell declined to be interviewed afterwards and it must be doubtful whether he will manage Brighton again given the continuing delays in finding the club a permanent home. The future of Bobby Zamora, Brighton's most precious asset, is also questionable. "If the chairman gets an offer he can't refuse, then that's that," said the striker whose 63 goals in two seasons took Brighton from the Third to the First Divisions. Asked where he would like to go, Zamora replied: "Anywhere".

Yesterday, he scored his 14th and last goal of the season, a slightly disappointing tally given the weight of expectations upon him in August, converting the second penalty of the afternoon. It was awarded on the very stroke of half-time as Steve Chettle's boot made the faintest of contacts with the in-rushing Gary Hart. Strangely, given that this was a game Brighton absolutely had to win, it was their first shot on target.

The second, two minutes after the restart, also produced a goal. Zamora's shot crashed into Chettle's face and the rebound flew kindly to Albion's captain, Danny Cullip, who stabbed the rebound through the legs of George Santos, the tall centre-half who mostly succeeded in smothering their sporadic attacks.

Only for about a quarter of an hour were Brighton on top, facing a doomed team fielding seven players who might not reappear for Grimsby again because they are on loan or out of contract. The dominance ended once news swept through that Stoke had scored. The drive and belief seeped from Brighton legs and, on the hour mark, Dave Beasant could only push Michael Keane's volley on to Richard Hughes' shin and Grimsby were level. They might actually have won the match had Chris Thompson not thumped a shot against the crossbar.

A home victory seemed the likeliest outcome from the moment play began in the softest spring sunshine. Grimsby's relegation had left them without the nerves that crawled all over Brighton's play and which were unable to cope with long balls pumped into the area. One such led to the day's first penalty, converted by Keane, when Kerry Mayo clumsily hauled down Thompson. In 1997, when Brighton went to Hereford for the match that decided who would remain in the Football League, Mayo had scored an own-goal, although Brighton survived. Yesterday they did not.

Goals: Keane (23) 1-0; Zamora (45) 1-1; Cullip (47) 1-2; Thompson (60) 2-2.

Grimsby Town (4-4-2): Coyne; McDermott (Parker, 89), Santos, Chettle (Bolder, 63), Gallimore; Campbell, Groves, Hughes, Keane (Cooke, 87); Mansaram, Thompson. Substitutes not used: Rowan, Pettinger (gk).

Brighton and Hove Albion (3-5-2): Beasant; Blackwell, Cullip, Mayo; Watson (Brooker, 73), Ingamarsson, Hart, Rodger, Jones (Carpenter, 69); Kitson (Barrett, 66), Zamora. Substitutes not used: Oatway, Packham (gk).

Referee: C Wilkes (Gloucester).

Booked: Brighton: Cullip, Kitson, Barrett, Zamora.

Man of the match: Keane.

Attendance: 6,396.