Sussex Sport Weekly podcast - episode 35 - Aston Villa, Marseille and Liverpool await for Brighton
Mark Dunford is joined by Brighton & Hove Albion writers Derren Howard and Frankie Elliott, and Brighton fan and Sussex World and Worthing Herald columnist Ian Hart. Brighton bounced back from their Europa League defeat with a 3-1 win against Bournemouth after coming from a goal behind. But last night they went out of the Carabao Cup to Chelsea - we will pick the bones out of that performance and look at their trips to Aston Villa and Marseille in the next week. Crawley Town moved up to fourth in League Two with another last-gasp win, this time scoring an added time winner at Grimsby. They face Sutton United, Doncaster and Wrexham in the next week. You can read all those stories we are talking about with videos and pictures on SussexWorld.co.uk
Transcript
00:00 the end of the week. I'm Mark Dunford and I'm joined by Brighton and Hove Albion writers,
00:09 Derren Howard and Frankie Elliott, and Brighton fan and Sussex World and Worthing Herald columnist,
00:13 Ian Hart. Brighton bounce back from their Europa League defeat with a 3-1 win against
00:18 Bournemouth after coming from a goal behind. But last night they went out of the Carabao
00:22 Cup to Chelsea. We will pick the bones out of that performance and look at their trips
00:25 to Aston Villa and Marseille in the next week. Crawley Town moved up to fourth in League
00:30 Two with another last gasp win, this time scoring an added time winner at Grimsby. They
00:35 face Sutton United, Doncaster and Wrexham in the next week in a busy week for the Reds.
00:39 You can read all about these stories we are talking about today with videos and pictures
00:43 on SussexWorld.co.uk. But we'll start with the 3-1 win at Bournemouth. And Harte, you
00:49 had a few things to say this week in your column about fans booing when the Seagulls
00:53 were 1-0 down. What was that all about?
00:56 Well, no, it wasn't just the Bournemouth game. It was the AEK Athens game. And look, we are
01:04 where we are. It's exciting times. The expectation was huge. Us guys in the media, you full-time,
01:12 me part-time. We did hype it up. Everybody hyped up. We had a pyrotechnic show. But let's
01:19 not forget we're playing AEK Athens in the Europa League. We gave away a couple of silly
01:26 goals, but we're playing Europa League football. We're not playing Darlington on a Tuesday
01:31 night at the Goldstone in front of under 3,000 fans. So if people are going to moan and groan
01:38 when we're playing Europa League football, then perhaps now is the time for them to find
01:42 another hobby. Because I'm not saying this is as good as it gets, but this is really
01:49 good. We need to be positive. We're not going to win every game. We know that. And then
01:55 on Sunday, again, we went 1-0 down. Was it a bit of a hangover from the AEK Athens game?
02:06 But we won. And I've got a bloke sat behind me just moaning and groaning for most of the
02:12 game, even when we were winning. And the bloke's going, "Get effing Pedro on. Get Pedro on."
02:20 And my son turned around and said, "He's on, mate. He's been on." This is a bloke sitting
02:28 in a hundred-pound seat. So this is not a knuckle-dragger. Well, maybe it is a rich
02:33 knuckle-dragger. But so we've just got to temper our expectations. We've got to realise
02:41 that this is the most vibrant, exciting squad that we've ever had. We don't know how far
02:47 they're going to go and what they're capable of. But let's remember where we've come from.
02:54 If we're going to barrack these people now, God knows what these people would have done
02:58 to some of the dross I've seen in Brighton shirts in the last 51 years. As I said in
03:04 my column, I've seen players that should have been treated by a vet, not a physio.
03:09 I mean, we've had some donkeys in our team. So let's just enjoy what we're doing. We're
03:16 not going to win every game. We know that. But it's an exciting journey. And go forward
03:24 and just... I appreciate, and it was the argument I had when I was a fanzine writer, "We pay
03:30 our money. We're entitled to criticise. We're entitled to have an opinion." But age has
03:36 told me that there's a whole range of opinions. And as Peter Sellers said to Cato, as Inspector
03:44 Cluseau, there's a time and a place. And I don't think sitting in a Europa League game
03:49 or in a Premier League game, when we've only lost one Premier League game all season, and
03:54 that's a game that we might have won on another day, it's not really a place to start really
04:00 being critical.
04:01 I mean, Roberto Deserbi is the best manager we will probably ever have. So let's just
04:08 enjoy the ride. We're not going to win every game. But please, keep your opinions to yourself,
04:15 as my schoolteacher used to say.
04:19 Darren, what did you think of the Bournemouth performance? I mean, you're going to get a
04:26 little bit of a reaction after the Athens defeat, aren't you? And there's going to be
04:31 some tired legs out there. But what did you make of the performance in total?
04:34 Yeah, absolutely. It's the first time that Brighton have gone from the Thursday to the
04:39 Sunday transition. And it was a little bit leggy in the first half. It wasn't great.
04:46 But credit to Bournemouth as well. I think a lot of the time, because Brighton are now
04:50 competing at the higher end of the table, there is some school of thought that we should
04:57 be rolling over teams like Bournemouth. And that doesn't always happen. Bournemouth are
05:01 a very good team. And they will cause many teams problems in the Premier League this
05:07 season. But what I thought was good was the reaction, how Brighton managed to turn it
05:12 around.
05:13 And I think there just does need to be an element of patience sometimes. Deserbi's team
05:19 create chances. If they go 1-0 down, even if they go 2-0 down, you cannot rule out this
05:24 Brighton team. And I think the fans need to stick with that sometimes. Because the game
05:30 against Chelsea last night, they didn't score. And it's the first time they haven't scored
05:34 since the FA Cup semi-final defeat to Manchester United way back in April.
05:39 So against Bournemouth, if there are games like that in the future, if there are instances
05:46 where they do go behind, I just think they need to keep the faith, keep the patience.
05:51 And Brighton will create chances and take them. Even against Chelsea, they should have
05:56 taken their chances as well. So I think the Bournemouth display also showed how good and
06:02 motivated Deserbi is as well. He spotted the issues. Brighton were too very deep in the
06:08 first half against Bournemouth. They didn't get on the front foot at all. And they changed
06:12 it around after the break. And then you saw what they're capable of. They created chances.
06:19 It still wasn't a faultless performance, but they did enough to win 3-1 and go up to third
06:24 in the Premier League. So yeah, as Ian's saying, really exciting times, I think, for Brighton
06:32 still at the moment.
06:33 Absolutely. But Frankie, they made their season a bit easier by going out of the Carabao Cup
06:39 last night. What did you make of that performance last night?
06:43 Disappointing, to be honest. I think I know it's not the most prestigious competition
06:49 out there for them playing in. And I know it would add more games continuing on in it.
06:55 But I think it was a real opportunity to win a trophy. I think I understand that the European
07:00 venture is the most exciting part of the season. Also, the fact they're doing very well in
07:04 the Premier League. But I think one of the things that would really inside the club's
07:08 hierarchy, I think the next step for them is to win a trophy. And I thought they had
07:12 a really good chance of doing that in the EFL Cup. They're playing a Chelsea team I
07:15 didn't think played particularly brilliantly last night. I think they had an opportunity
07:18 to... they were there for the taking, especially with the chances that they gave away to Brighton
07:24 where they were playing out from the back. They looked very, very clunky. I thought it
07:27 was an opportunity to go and win that game at Stamford Bridge.
07:30 Making seven changes, again, it's a wholesale change. I think it really disrupts the flow
07:35 of the team. We saw it against Bournemouth, I think, in the first half. The nine changes
07:39 they made from the Thursday's game led to a very slow start. Obviously, they turned
07:43 it around at half time from some good tactical decisions. But last night, they brought in
07:48 seven new players again and I felt they didn't play badly. They had their chances to win
07:53 the game. It wasn't a terrible performance, but it looked clunky. It looked very, very
07:57 clunky. And players like Julio and Carlos Palabra, who are clearly got talent and clearly
08:02 got promise, they're still obviously getting used to playing both the Zerby style of football
08:06 and the pace of the Premier League. They looked off it. They looked off it. And it meant the
08:13 game got away from them, really. Like I said, I didn't think Chelsea had to do an awful
08:17 lot to win that game. They created chances for sure, but I didn't think they were defensively
08:22 sound at all. I think Brighton got on very easily and could have done even more so if
08:26 they played a stronger team.
08:27 So last night, to me, reminded me of what Graham Potter's Brighton used to be, especially
08:34 towards the end of his tenure, which was very competitive in those sort of games and create
08:39 chances but never really take them, never really look like they're going to take the
08:43 game and dominate and win the game. And that's what I felt the team played like because of
08:49 the amount of changes, because the amount of players, the key players, people like Lewis
08:52 Dunk, Solly March not starting either, people like that that didn't start the game.
08:57 It meant that they weren't ever dominating the game, which they could have done. So for
09:01 me, it was not terrible. And like I said, in many respects, like you say, they're out
09:05 of the competition where many would have felt they didn't want to go very far in any way.
09:09 They've got bigger fish to fry. But I think it's a big opportunity missed and it's a bit
09:15 of a shame.
09:16 Yeah. Hart, what do you think? Is it a competition they're going to be bothered about going out
09:21 of or is it a missed opportunity given like Man City went out last night?
09:25 They're very disappointed in these Halcyon days that Frankie has to bring the P word
09:32 up. Is he trying to upset me on a Thursday morning? I'm pleased we went out because I
09:41 don't want to fall between two stalls. I think that we're not going to win the Premier League
09:48 but we need to finish as high as possible there. We might have a go at the FA Cup, hopefully
09:53 after last year's disappointment. And obviously, after the blip against AEK Athens, I still
10:00 firmly believe that we will get out of the group in the Europa League. We always knew,
10:06 all four of us knew that the squad isn't big enough. So we have to make sacrifices and
10:13 I do think going out of the League Cup, yes, it is winnable. Maybe next year it will be
10:17 and then if we don't get back in Europe next year. But I just think that the squad isn't
10:25 big enough and we can't spread ourselves on all these different fronts. So as much as
10:33 I hate it when Brighton lose, I hate it when they lose in any competition. When I finally
10:40 arrived back at Shezhar shortly before midnight, I wasn't shedding any tears that we won't
10:46 be playing Blackburn in the next round.
10:48 Fair enough. Real Tesserabeum on Saturday, Deron. Villa away, two sides who disappointed
10:56 in their first Europa League games. It's not going to be an easy trip for De Zerbi and
11:00 Co is it?
11:01 No. Villa had a bad result last night as well to Everton. So they'll be looking to bounce
11:09 back strongly. And similar to Brighton, there were a few boos around Villa Park. They got
11:16 booed off the pitch by some sections of the fans against Everton in the first half. Again,
11:22 you just think that's a bit harsh as well. Villa have been on a really upward rise as
11:26 well. One bad 45 minutes and the fans are booing them. So yes, similar sort of situation
11:33 to Brighton as well.
11:35 But I think it's going to be a very difficult game. Villa Park is a very difficult place
11:39 to go when they're playing really well and the crowd are behind them. So I'm expecting
11:44 a tough game. But I think there are going to be changes as well. I was looking at that.
11:48 When you look at the key areas in the Brighton team, last night it was Van Hecker, Julio,
11:55 Baliba and De Hood. Those key areas in centre back and those two double pivots in the midfield.
12:02 And that is very fresh. That is still a work in progress this season. So you're missing
12:08 Lewis Dunk from there, Levi Colwell or Adam Webster, who were very good last season. And
12:15 then Baliba and De Hood, that's a completely fresh combination. So that is going to take
12:19 a bit of time to gel. And I expect that to change massively for the Villa game. You're
12:25 going to have Lewis Dunk back in there, probably Adam Webster as well maybe, I think would
12:30 come back in for that if he's fit. And then you're going to have Billy Gilmore as well.
12:34 Billy Pascal Gross or James Milner aren't playing. So I think you could have Billy Gilmore
12:39 and De Hood. And I think that area of the pitch is where everything starts from for
12:44 Brighton. And I think it's going to be a big improvement at Villa with those players coming
12:50 back in.
12:51 Yeah, Frankie, Villa have had a decent start to the Premier League. What's impressed you
12:55 so far about them so far this season? And in Unai Emery, with De Zerby and Emery, two
13:01 of the best coaches in the Premier League as well?
13:03 Yeah, 100 percent. 100 percent. I think it's definitely suited Emery to move to a club
13:10 like Villa because it's not really spoken about much, but Villa's owners, they're not
13:14 very loud or outspoken, but they are very, very ambitious. They've spent a lot of money
13:19 and they've put a lot of money into the football club and they see themselves targeting Champions
13:23 League football. And that's what the appointment of Emery did was they had a manager there
13:27 who is, I believe, I know the Arsenal thing didn't really work out, but he's one of the
13:30 best coaches in Europe. I mean, to win the Europa League once is an achievement, to do
13:37 it multiple times shows, with the squads that he did, shows the calibre of manager he is.
13:42 And I think being in a set-up, in a structure with Villa that is very ambitious and well-run
13:47 has really suited him. They backed him, they brought in some very, very talented players
13:50 and now they've got a manager. Obviously, the Steven Gerrard thing didn't really work,
13:54 but with Emery, they've got a quality manager who can set them up perfectly for games against
13:59 big teams in a different way to deserve these. Brian, we know that they play well against
14:03 the big sides because they seem to dominate them, possession-wise. Emery sets up his teams
14:08 to catch them on the counter-attack. They're very well organised, they're very defensively
14:12 well drilled and they can pick up 1-0, 2-0 wins with very little, seeing very little
14:16 of the ball because they can counter-attack so effectively. So, I think that's the thing
14:21 I've been most impressed with is that ability to do that in any game against, we saw against
14:26 Chelsea, they actually sat back for most of that game but came out with a 1-0 win. And
14:31 I think we can see them doing that again on Saturday. I think we saw it, they did it,
14:35 I mean, it was an end-of-season game for sure, but they did it at Villa Park last year when
14:39 they won 2-1. I think Emery will sort of relish playing a team like Brian because that will
14:45 sit perfectly for him. He'll see a team that will want to keep the ball for large periods
14:49 of the game. But you'll also see, as we saw against Bournemouth, as we saw last night,
14:54 that they are susceptible to making mistakes, certainly when playing out from the back because
14:57 it's not as fluent as maybe it could be with all these changes that are happening now.
15:02 So they will see an opportunity to pounce on one of those mistakes and grab a 1-0, 2-0
15:08 win. So, I don't think they'll fear Brighton like other teams do because they have a game
15:12 plan in place, which we've seen used effectively by West Ham already, to win the game.
15:17 Yeah, definitely. Harty, are you going to Villa on Saturday?
15:22 No, I'm not because I'm going to Worthing against Whitehawk in the FA Cup because my
15:28 coach actually sponsored the game, East versus West, as we're calling it in here. Obviously,
15:39 Greg Lurr works for me, so there's a fair chance that he'll win player of the match.
15:44 But no, I'm going to be watching the Villa game at lunchtime and then heading down to
15:52 Woodside Road. And obviously, the kick-off time is great for everybody to watch. I know
15:58 Lewis have got a game. I know Horsham have got a game in the FA Cup. Anyone watching
16:04 this at a loose end, go out and support your local teams Saturday afternoon. We've got
16:09 some cracking cup ties. I'm confident Worthing will get past Whitehawk. We really are due
16:17 a cup run down at Woodside Road, so looking forward to that. But going back to the Villa
16:22 game, we've obviously got eight days that are pivotal. Not so much pivotal for the season,
16:30 but pivotal for where we are now. Villa away, Marseille away, Liverpool at home. We've effectively
16:36 got to avoid defeat in all three games to carry on the momentum. A little bit of not
16:47 rest, but we haven't got Sunday, Thursday. We've got Saturday, Thursday this week. You've
16:52 really got to look at RDZ putting out his strongest team against Villa and his strongest
16:59 team against Marseille. And dare I say, just to be consistent, his strongest team against
17:04 Liverpool. It's only October, but we're at the sharp end now. It's September on Thursday,
17:13 but we are at the sharp end now. We're playing teams that we're up there in the league with.
17:21 And after the blip against AEK Athens, we've got to go to the south of France and get a
17:25 result. So not so much rotation, just fingers crossed everybody's fit and raring to go.
17:36 To be fair, having seen countless Albion players over the years, if you can't motivate yourself
17:43 for the next eight days, like the Albion fans, you should be looking for another hobby. You
17:47 should be looking for another club because these are golden times. These are Halcyon
17:53 days and we just really need to go. I can see us getting a result at Villa. I can see
17:58 us getting a result at Marseille. And then, as they say in the boxing world, the Brighton-Liverpool
18:04 game is a little bit of a pick-em because they've got a Thursday-Sunday as well scenario.
18:09 So, but all three games really, really pivotal. You almost run out of superlatives and adjectives,
18:17 but this is a vital eight days, a huge eight days.
18:23 Absolutely. And your trip to Woodside Road, you'll have less restrictions than you will
18:27 when you go to Marseille on next Thursday.
18:30 Yeah, a little bit disappointed, but they're probably looking out for the old geezers like
18:35 me that don't want to turn a corner and end up going into the wrong bar. I've done that
18:41 several times in my trips around the globe and it's not pleasant. And I certainly don't
18:46 want someone throwing a white plastic chair at me at any time. So yeah, look, I think
18:54 Brighton have been criticised wrongly for being overcautious. I think they've had to
18:59 put these guidelines out there. Speaking to, it's bizarre because I was talking to Bob
19:05 Rogers, who is the former president of the RFU, and he was absolutely waxing lyrical
19:12 about how lovely the people in Marseille are when England played there in the Rugby World
19:16 Cup in 2007. And he's been down there for rugby matches and it's brilliant. And, you
19:23 know, from what we're being painted, it's going to be a bad night in Saigon when we
19:27 get down there next Thursday. So I hope people have been a little bit overcautious. I hope
19:34 every, well, I know the majority, the overwhelming majority of fans, Brighton fans will behave
19:40 themselves. And if you just stick to the directives, I think it will be fine. That said, it is
19:47 the 103rd ground I've watched the Albion play competitive football in, and I cannot wait.
19:54 It's absolutely, it is a dream come true. You know, I've been to Rochdale, I've been
19:58 to Carlisle by plane, and that's a trip and a half, shore room to Carlisle airport. And
20:04 now I'm flying from Heathrow to Marseille to go and watch my beloved Brighton over Albion.
20:10 I'm going to enjoy it. And I do feel, I know we probably took AEK, Athens lightly, although
20:17 they probably watched the West Ham video and saw how Brighton could be beat. I think we
20:23 are, I think we're going to have the measure of both Marseille and Ajax. So I think we're
20:29 going to be all right. I'm going for Brighton's first Europa, the first trip to Europe will
20:35 be an away win.
20:37 Wow. There you go. Well, we'll talk about it more next week, Frankie, but what can we
20:42 expect from Marseille? I mean, what sort of side have they got?
20:47 Well, I mean, it was the group of death to start with when it was first drawn. It's the
20:50 group of crisis at the moment because Ajax are currently in free fall and obviously have
20:55 those stadium protests after their game on Sunday and Marseille are in a world of trouble
21:00 as well. They sacked their manager last week. They started the season okay, were unbeaten
21:05 in their first three games. They haven't won in their last three. They were beaten quite
21:09 comfortably by PSG on Sunday, which is no disrespect, obviously, but still it doesn't
21:14 look great for how the season is panning out. So it's probably a good time to play. And
21:20 like I said, they've currently got a caretaker boss in charge. Don't seem to be a very settled
21:24 team. They did well last year, thanks to the goals of Alexi Sanchez, who we know from Arsenal
21:29 and Manchester United, but he left in the summer to join Inter Milan. They're struggling
21:33 for goals since he's gone. They signed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the summer. Again, another one
21:39 that many Premier League fans will know. He's yet to get a firing. They've yet to find a
21:45 sort of solid 11 that is sort of similar to the team they had last year, but it is full
21:51 of quality and full of players that a lot of people will know, ex-Premier League players,
21:55 Gwendoosie, Ismaili Saar, Chancellor Mbembe, Ronan Lodi, the Sheffield United player who
22:02 did very, very well last season, Ilhaman Endai. They've all joined Marseille. So there are
22:06 a lot of players that will know about Brighton and will have played Brighton before. Probably
22:10 not played against the Serbies, Brighton, but be aware of the qualities that the Seagulls
22:15 can bring. But it is a side, like I say, that isn't playing very well. It's an ageing team
22:19 as well. We know, obviously, of course, how experience can play a part in these European
22:26 games, as A.K. Athens showed. But in regards to when they played at Athens, I felt Brighton
22:31 didn't appreciate that they were playing a team that were champions and were a successful
22:36 team. This Marseille team is not as successful as... It's more star-studded, but much more
22:41 international players, but it's not got as many winners in it at the moment as the Athens
22:46 team did. So it will be a difficult game. I said Marseille is a very, very tough ground
22:50 to go. It's a hostile atmosphere. But in regards to the team they're playing, that Brighton
22:55 are playing better than them, and they should take that into account when they travel.
22:59 Yeah, interesting. So just quickly moving on to Crawley Town. They face Sutton United
23:03 on Saturday, looking to extend their run of four wins on the trot. They beat Grimsby Town
23:08 last week, 3-2, thanks to Danilo Orsi's goal five minutes into added time. After Sutton
23:13 on Saturday, they face Doncaster away on Tuesday and Wrexham at home on Saturday, so a busy
23:17 week ahead for the Reds. We'll talk about Wrexham more next week, but, Hathi, just wanted
23:22 to get your thoughts on the Wrexham story and his billionaire Hollywood actors getting
23:26 into - sorry - and do you think billionaire Hollywood actors getting into British football
23:32 is a good thing?
23:36 It's a difficult one because I'm a bit of a traditionalist. I support a football club
23:43 who are owned by a British owner who actually supports the football club. I think you have
23:47 to beware of Greeks bearing gifts. You've only got to look at the Glazers and various
23:52 other people who own football clubs. I believe Pompey have had their fair share of owners
24:01 that probably wouldn't pass the fit and proper test now. Look, it is what it is. We'll never
24:11 go back to the days of Bob Lord, Doug Ellis, Manny Cousins at Leeds, Martin Edwards at
24:18 Manchester United, where we've got British owners who support the clubs and our local
24:25 people. We at Brighton have got that and we're very lucky in Long May it Rain. Other people
24:31 have gone down another route. I was at Chelsea last night. They've clearly gone down another
24:38 route. It's almost - Chelsea's almost like a tourist attraction. I almost felt at times
24:44 I was in the family stand with my mate who's a Chelsea fan last night. Big time. Thanks
24:49 for taking me out there. I almost felt I could have been at the Tower of London or Madame
24:54 Two Swords because it was just full of, you know, full of not people from South West London
25:01 or West London. It was just full of tourists. And the thing that I know we're tight for
25:08 time, but it's my big bugbear. These bloody signs. Can I have your shirt? The kid next
25:13 to me had this sign, wanted Moodrick's shirt or whatever, the lad who plays for Chelsea.
25:19 And he spent more time worrying about holding his sign up than watching the game. Just let's
25:25 ban them. Let's get them out. We don't want - I mean, there's been times of me watching
25:30 the Albion where I would have held up a shirt. It's Ashley Neal, don't give me your shirt.
25:34 You know, that's how bad things were. But, you know, look, it is what it is with these
25:40 foreign owners. You've only got to look at the Glazers and how they got control of Manchester
25:47 United with various loans. I mean, that's like something like find the lady in Oxford
25:52 Street going back a few years. You know, it's a very complex trick. I don't like foreign
25:59 owners, but they're here, so I've got to get on with it.
26:02 Fair enough. Darren, have you followed the Wrexham story? What do you think?
26:08 Yeah, it adds a little bit of drama and it's certainly something for the media to latch
26:15 onto when you've got a Hollywood actor. Ryan Reynolds, I quite like his movies as well.
26:20 I think he's been in quite a few good movies over the years and he really seems passionate
26:25 about it. He spoke a few times where he said, you know, that it's one of the most rewarding
26:30 things that he's ever done. And you can see why when you get your hooks into a club and
26:36 when you really get involved in it and you're on an upward curve, at whatever level you're
26:42 on, you get into the characters of the team, you get into all the little nuances and what
26:48 it takes and it takes over your life in a certain respect when you're really involved
26:53 in a football club. And I think he's got a taste of that. Yeah, I don't have a massive
27:00 problem with it. I think there's, as Ian said, there's so many wealthy owners around these
27:05 days that want to want to look and get involved in it. And it's just part of the entertainment
27:11 business, which football is really.
27:13 So, yeah. And Frankie, have you watched Welcome to Wrexham? I must admit, I love the show.
27:18 It's great to follow it. But yeah, no, no, I haven't. I think that similar to what Darren
27:24 says, I think you can obviously be sceptical about it. And obviously it does mean that
27:29 the only spotlight the bottom half of the footballing pyramid gets is of Wrexham and
27:33 it make fans of other clubs in League Two and the conference will be like, you know,
27:38 funny enough, the world outside of Wrexham does exist in League Two. But I truly think
27:43 it's good. It's a good thing because it does create a spotlight. And it's it it allows
27:49 for more coverage of those leagues, because I think since the Premier League has become
27:53 this juggernaut of a business, I think the Football League has really struggled to really
27:57 compete and maintain having, you know, competitive leagues, good quality football and also teams
28:04 that can compete in the Premier League once they get promoted. I think it's really been
28:07 it's really been a struggle. I mean, this season is the best example of that. But having
28:11 teams like Wrexham who are owned by Hollywood actors, it may it may cause a lot of teams
28:17 to to give a lot of hate towards them. I actually think it does a lot of good as well. And I
28:22 think if it can be used in the right way, which is what they seem to be doing, as Darren
28:26 said, they seem to be really enjoying and giving it that giving it their all.
28:29 You know, it can only be a good thing because it creates you know, it creates more spotlight
28:33 on those leagues. I think that's important. Absolutely. And a town like Wrexham as well.
28:38 You look at if you watch Welcome to Wrexham, the effect it's had on the community as well
28:42 as a really good thing sort of uplifting the economy of the town as well and stuff. And
28:46 that was really it's a really interesting documentary. I really enjoyed it. But yeah,
28:52 from what I understand, Mr. Reynolds and Mr. McElhaney are not going to be at Broadfield
28:56 Stadium next week, but the Welcome to Wrexham cameras will be. So I'll be there with my
29:00 makeup on ready to go. Yeah, just in case. Right. We'll do our score predictions now.
29:06 Hi, we'll start with you, Aston Villa versus Brighton first game.
29:13 Villa nil, Brighton two.
29:15 Oh, it's going to be close. I'm going to go for one all.
29:24 One all. Darren.
29:25 Yeah, I don't think Brighton are quite firing at the moment. They're not quite their best.
29:30 I'm going to go two two.
29:31 Oh, I was going to go two two as well. So there you go. So, Hathi, you're the most positive
29:36 about Brighton this weekend. We'll quickly move to Crawley Town. They've got two games.
29:41 Crawley Town versus Sutton. Crawley fourth. Sutton bottom of the table at the moment in
29:46 League Two. I'm going to go for a three one win for Crawley Town. Frankie.
29:50 I'm going to go for a three nil Crawley.
29:53 Three nil. Cool. Hathi.
29:57 I'm actually shocked because I thought Crawley were in three four with this, all these crypto
30:02 boys and things, you know, so uncertainty. So I don't really know much about it. So I'll
30:08 go one nil Crawley.
30:09 Oh, good. They're playing some wonderful football at the moment, aren't they? That's
30:13 all I can tell you. And Darren.
30:15 Yeah, they are playing good football. Two nil Crawley. I think two nil Crawley I'm going
30:19 to go for.
30:20 Lovely. And they're away at Doncaster. Another team who are struggling, but they beat Gillingham
30:24 last week. They're away there on Tuesday night. I'm going to go for a two two draw here. I
30:29 go out at Doncaster. Frankie.
30:32 Yeah, I think I'm going to go for a one all draw on that one.
30:35 One all. Darren.
30:36 Yeah, I was going to go one one as well. Yeah. Tough travel midweek.
30:41 Hathi, you know a lot about Doncaster and Crawley. What are you going for?
30:46 Can I just say Doncaster are the worst team I've ever seen in the football league. I saw
30:52 them play on the 14th of Feb 1998 at Gillingham in Fans United 2, the heart of football. It
30:59 was Brighton nil, Doncaster nil. They could still be playing now and they wouldn't have
31:03 scored either team. It was dross. But I think both teams will do well next week. So I'm
31:10 going Doncaster two, Crawley two.
31:13 Lovely. Excellent. And you already showed your hand on this one. You said Brighton are
31:16 going to win Hathi at Marseille. But what's the score going to be?
31:21 I think we're going to win well. I think I'm going to go Marseille one, Brighton three.
31:25 Well, lovely. Let's all hope that happens. Frankie.
31:28 Yeah, I'm actually I'm also going to go three one because that seems to be Brighton's favourite
31:33 scoreline this season.
31:34 Yeah, absolutely. And Darren?
31:35 I think it's one of the biggest games of Brighton's history and I think they're going to be up
31:43 for it. And I'm going to go two nil. Two nil win.
31:46 Two nil. Yeah, I'm going to go three nil. I'm going to go big. So, yeah, we're all predicting
31:51 a Brighton win there. So Hathi, enjoy that next week and we'll have some coverage from
31:56 Hathi live from Marseille. Well, I don't know if it's going to be live or not, but we'll
32:00 have some coverage and you can catch up.
32:03 Please stay.
32:04 Yeah, you can catch up with all the latest sports news covering everything we've talked
32:10 about today at Sussexworld.co.uk. Thanks for joining us, Hathi and thanks Darren and Frankie
32:15 and we'll speak next week.
32:17 Thanks James.
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