Brighton Lose Season Opener 1-0

Sami Hyypia will have to wait to celebrate his first competitive victory as Brighton and Hove Albion manager. The Seagulls, who played with ten men for most of the second half, lost 1-0 at home to Sheffield Wednesday thanks to a superb, curling shot from Giles Coke.

Andrew Crofts was sent off just after the break for a dangerous tackle on Wednesday’s Sam Hutchinson. Hyypia wouldn’t be drawn on the issue however. He stated: “I don’t even want to look at it, I saw what I saw, and the referee made his decision, I cant change the decision so why would I talk about that?

On the game as a whole, the Finnish boss was pleased with his side’s performance. “We lost and it’s not nice to lose, but I like the effort of everyone on the pitch. We kept going and probably should have deserved the equalising goal.

Albion will feel aggrieved that they took nothing from the game; captain Gordon Greer and new striker Chris O’Grady had chances to level the score, but it wasn’t to be.

Former Barnsley forward, O’Grady couldn’t believe Owls keeper Keiren Westwood managed to thwart his effort. He said: “I just tried to do what I would do in that situation, just be calm and place it, and saw his top hand reach to it and tip it round the post, I was a bit gutted about that.”

Hyypia had to withdraw up and coming midfielder Solly March for his starting eleven before the game owing to some stiffness in his back. But the twenty year old should be fit for the visit of Cheltenham on Tuesday for the Capital One Cup First Round clash.