Albion demonstrated champion strength in depth at The Shay Stadium last night.

The title winning Seagulls made Halifax sweat for the point they needed to guarantee safety, despite fielding a below-strength side.

The impressive Lee Steele and Nathan Jones went close in the first half of a match Albion controlled for long periods.

They are now unbeaten for 12 matches and Michel Kuipers and debutant substitute Will Packham combined to keep the Seagulls' fifth clean sheet out of six.

Halifax almost snatched an undeserved victory on the stroke of full time with a 20 yard shot from Alan Reilly, which Packham turned away for a corner.

Albion made six changes after Tuesday's title triumph against Chesterfield at Withdean.

In came Steele, Jones, Ramsay, Melton, Wicks and Martin Thomas. Out went Zamora, Oatway, Brooker, Rogers, Cullip and Carpenter.

The Seagulls were captained by Crosby in the absence of Rogers and Oatway.

Among the survivors of Tuesday's celebration was Mayo, exactly four years after he played in Albion's relegation decider at Hereford.

Halifax brought back topscorer Kerrigan, who passed a late fitness test on a nagging knee problem.

There was a generous gesture by Halifax before kick-off. Their players formed a guard of honour to clap Albion on to the pitch and the home supporters gave the Seagulls a standing ovation in recognition of their first silverware since 1965.

It was a different story once the action got underway, with Halifax piling the pressure on in the opening minutes.

Kuipers had difficulty dealing with an early corner from Reilly and then veteran Redfearn had a shot deflected over the bar for another corner.

Albion responded with an incisive move initiated by a raking long range pass from the fit-again Wicks.

It was laid off first time by Hart for Steele to fire narrowly wide.

Steele's near miss launched a spell of domination for the Seagulls as they began to get their game together on a difficult playing surface.

Steele and Mayo were prominent in another cohesive move which ended with Ramsay turning and shooting straight at Butler.

Strike partners Steele and Ramsay then linked up well to find Hart deep inside the Halifax box. Jules quelled the threat, with the Albion fans behind the goal appealing for hand ball by the Halifax leftback.

Albion were showing commendable commitment considering they had nothing to play for except the chance to break a few more club records.

The determined manner of their display certainly removed any qualms the bottom two Barnet and Torquay may have had about the Seagulls' desire to deny Halifax the result they required.

The home side were finding it tough after their early surge and Albion were looking quite comfortable at the back.

Steele was looking especially sharp on only his fifth start of a frustrating season, punctuated by injuries and suspension.

He returned possession to Jones with a clever backheel and the recalled Welshman's low drive was kept out with his legs by keeper Butler.

Halifax had to wait until the 40th minute for a worthwhile effort on target, Stoneman meeting Reilly's left-wing cross at the far post with a header straight at Kuipers.

Watson collected the first caution of the contest two minutes later for a foul on Jules.

It was a little harsh on Albion's rightback as Jules more or less ran into him.

Albion controlled possession at the start of the second half, which increased the anxiety of the Halifax supporters in a healthy crowd.

Ramsay made space for himself to strike a low 20 yard shot from a central position at Butler, who was much the busier of the two keepers.

The Seagulls gave another opportunity to teenage prospect Virgo at the expense of Watson eleven minutes into the restart.

Virgo's previous first team appearances were in the centre of defence, but this time he took over from Watson at rightback.

Steele was proving a constant threat to the Halifax defence as Albion continued to dominate.

The Seagulls made a further substitution on 63 minutes, old stager Stant coming on in place of Hart to form a three-pronged attack with Steele and Ramsay.

Micky Adams maintained the experimental mode by giving young goalkeeper Packham his League debut in place of Kuipers midway through the second half.

Middleton, scorer of vital goals in Halifax's previous two matches, had his name taken with 20 minutes remaining for a foul on Ramsay.