Leon Knight predicted today that Colin Kazim-Richards will soon come good for Albion in the Coca-Cola Championship.

Knight, off the mark against Crewe last Saturday, believes it is only a matter of time before the Seagulls' new teenage striker follows suit.

Former Bury marksman Kazim-Richards has been playing alone up front.

He drew a blank in the Seagulls' first three matches and has been substituted in each of the last two but his team-mates and manager Mark McGhee are pleading for patience ahead of Saturday's trip to Hull.

Knight, whose goal against Crewe ended a seven-month drought, said: "It's going to take time. You never know when that chance is going to come, you have just got to be there at the right time.

"When it comes Colin has got to be ready and I think he will be. He's got to keep plugging away.

"He's playing in there by himself, so it's hard for him. When we start playing 4-4-2 then I think it will be a bit easier and the goals will come."

McGhee is happy with Kazim-Richards' unselfish contribution, which helped Albion to draws against Derby and Crewe.

"First of all he is 18. We knew he could go into the team because physically he is beyond his years but he is inexperienced.

"He has probably now started 13 League games in his career and we were asking him in at least two of the games to play a certain role which isn't necessarily going to get him into a lot of goalscoring positions.

"People have got to understand he's doing a specific job for us at the moment. That job is designed to help us get results and we've had two results so far."

Albion had a scare yesterday when Knight hurt his right calf in a training match.

McGhee said: "He got a kick which impacted on the nerve and caused a bit of numbness, which gave him a fright, but the doctor thinks it will settle down in 24 hours and he will be fine to train on Thursday."

Florent Chaigneau, the giant young French goalkeeper signed on a year-long loan from Rennes, makes his Albion debut tonight in the opening match of the season for the reserves against Woking at Worthing (7pm).

Albion Reserves: Chaigneau; T. Elphick, El-Abd, G. Elphick, Rents; Robinson, Hart, Nicolas, Jarrett; McCammon, Turienzo.