Kuipers' Dutch courage

In that first game he was humiliatingly hauled off at half-time by Micky Adams at Southend.

Last season he saw off the challenge from Mark Cartwright who, courtesy of the quirks of the FA Cup draw, will be in the opposition's goal for Shrewsbury next month.

Kuipers has gone on to become a key figure in the Seagulls' success story, so it was fitting for him to celebrate a half-century of League appearances for the club with a match-winning performance.

The former marine came to the rescue of an unfamiliar defence which found itself in deep water in the first half against unfortunate Colchester.

Less than two minutes had elapsed when Kuipers kept out Kevin Rapley's shot from close range.

He went on to deny Colchester's leading marksman Scott McGleish twice and the talented Kemal Izzet with a mixture of agility, bravery and astute positioning.

They say it is the sign of a good team if you can win without playing well and Kuipers was content to go along with that theory after Bobby Zamora extended Albion's remarkable Withdean run to 42 points out of a possible 45.

"They (Colchester) were hard to play against, because of their formation," he said. "They had like a diamond up front and that was really hard to defend against. They had a spare man a lot of times.

"The spirit is very important, especially when the team doesn't play well. Determination and togetherness can give you the points.

"We are still second and we are really positive about things. We are a very strong side and if we can keep picking up points from away games we will definitely be up there."

Albion, of course, have a diamond up front themselves in Zamora. Normal service was resumed after his five-match Withdean drought, thanks to his telepathic understanding with Paul Watson.

For the umpteenth time an opposing defence was caught asleep by a quickly taken Watson free-kick.

Zamora, reading his intention to escape from former Seagull Ross Johnson, toe-poked in his 11th goal of the campaign.

Johnson has joined the list of Zamora admirers.

"They are a compact side and you could see they have got a good team spirit, but the main danger is obviously the man up front," said the Brighton-born stopper. "He is a good player. His record speaks for itself."

Indeed it does. Zamora is now only two away from a half-century of goals for the club.

A strong spine is important to any successful side. Albion's backbone was a touch brittle in the absence of Danny Cullip due to a knee injury sustained in training.

To complicate matters further Simon Morgan, Cullip's regular partner in the centre of defence, was left groggy by an early aerial collision with McGleish and he did not re-appear for the second half.

Andy Crosby teamed up with Matthew Wicks as a result, which had an element of irony about it.

Crosby, you may recall, handed in a transfer request when Wicks was preferred by Adams to deputise for Cullip in the Worthington Cup tie against Southampton last month.

Wicks was making only his second League start of the season and, although Albion generally looked uncertain at the back, it would be unfair to pin the blame for that on individuals.

Indeed, Peter Taylor was "very pleased" with Wicks and Crosby.

He is learning more about his players with every match and we are learning more about him.

Taylor demonstrated that he is not afraid to make unpopular decisions when he withdrew Lee Steele and brought on Paul Brooker midway through the second half.

Even the hapless fourth official seemed to think that Nathan Jones, preferred to Brooker in the starting line-up, was the one going off.

Fans are not too interested in tactical detail, but they ought to put their trust in a man with a coaching record like Taylor has.

The change had the desired effect. Colchester's midfield supremacy was suffocated and, even though the visitors continued to enjoy plenty of possession, Albion looked less vulnerable in the last 25 minutes than at any stage in the contest.

"We stopped the strength of the opposition and it meant the only service that was coming in then was from the fullbacks," Taylor explained. "To me Wicks and Crosby could handle the balls coming in from there.

"I was pleased with Matthew and with Andy when he came on. I thought they both did really well.

"It wasn't the best of performances, but we were grateful for the three points. Colchester deserve a lot of credit, because they were a lively and bright team.

"We knew we had to be together and, although we didn't perform well, the longer the game went on I thought we had a bit more shape about us and we were then hard to break down."

Steve Whitton's sense of injustice was understandable, although the Colchester boss perhaps over-stated things slightly when he protested: "We played Brighton off the pitch."

He added: "A lack of concentration cost us the match. We should have wrapped up the game by half-time, but we switched off completely from the free-kick from which Zamora scored."

The LDV Vans Trophy is usually a switch off for supporters in the early rounds, but tomorrow night's tie against Wycombe provides Taylor with the perfect opportunity to look at the players he has not yet seen much of.

Significantly Albion are now seven points clear of seventh-placed Wycombe, a sound base from which to achieve Taylor's aim on his appointment of at least a play-off place.