Albion's game at Gillingham on Saturday could be the last for Danny Cullip before hernia surgery.

Manager Mark McGhee today revealed his courageous captain should already have gone under the surgeon's knife.

Cullip has been playing with a hernia in recent matches, including last Saturday's home defeat by Queens Park Rangers.

The trip to Gillingham for the Seagulls is followed four days later by a visit to Nottingham Forest.

McGhee said: "I would have thought Danny has another couple of games.

"He was supposed to get it done on Monday but, because of Guy Butters' injury, he put it off. He might even struggle for next Wednesday."

McGhee is hopeful Cullip and former Gill Butters can resume their long-standing partnership in the centre of defence on Saturday.

"Butts is absolutely desperate to play," McGhee said. "Our physio Malcolm Stuart thinks he has got a good chance."

The doubts over the fitness of Cullip and Butters prompted McGhee to play Adam Virgo and Adam Hinshelwood as centre halves in a 4-1 friendly victory for a strong Albion XI at Littlehampton last night, with Adam El-Abd and Dan Harding as the fullbacks.

"That was the big exercise for me, just in case in the next couple of weeks they have to do that," McGhee said.

Albion won with goals by Virgo, Maheta Molango, Leon Knight and Albert Jarrett.

Knight and Charlie Oatway played for an hour and Richard Carpenter for the whole game, but Simon Rodger missed out because of a stiff back.

Knight has been fined by the FA and warned about his conduct following an incident at Reading on the opening day of the season. The suspended striker was sitting behind the subs' bench when he was involved in an incident with the fourth official.

The match was in aid of Scott Hinshelwood, the 24-year-old son of Albion's director of football Martin Hinshelwood, who suffered a serious knee injury playing for Littlehampton last season.

Albion XI: May; El-Abd, Hinshelwood, Virgo, Harding; Reid, Oatway, Carpenter, Jones; Molango, Knight.