Picture the predicament. In the past two years you have moved up the property ladder from a one-bed flat into a two-bed apartment.

You work as hard as you can to keep your home in good order and the employees in the company department you manage work just as hard.

Life is pretty good, much better than it was two years ago, except your apartment is surrounded by three-bedroom houses and mansions.

You do not have enough money for an extension to fit in with the environment and, even though most weeks you perform better than your wealthier neighbours, you and your workers have nothing to show for it.

The company's major shareholder would like you to have one of the mansions but the neighbours are difficult and planning permission is a never-ending problem.

Meanwhile, a minority of nitpicking customers moan about every little mistake you and your department make, ignoring all the good work you have done.

The way things are going you may have to move back down into the onebed flat. It is an intensely frustrating situation for all concerned and yet nobody is to blame. It is just the way it is.

This is Albion in season 2005-2006. Mark McGhee is that homeowner and company manager, the workers his players and chairman Dick Knight the major shareholder.

The customers are the fans, the neighbours Championship rivals, League One the one-bed flat. One of the mansions is Falmer, the extension the striker McGhee cannot afford.

It was, as Wayne Henderson pointed out, the same old story inside another of those mansions, otherwise known as the Ricoh Arena, on Saturday.

Albion completely outplayed in-form Coventry in the first half but had nobody up front to reflect their superiority in the scoreline.

Instead up popped the diminutive Dennis the menace to head, yes that is right, head the Sky Blues into an absurdly flattering lead before delivering the killer blow midway through the second half.

Albion's afternoon of misfortune began in only the fifth minute, when a well-struck shot from Alex Frutos received an unhelpful hand from Coventry's flying young Hungarian keeper Marton Fulop as it thudded against the upright.

Chance after chance came and went as the Seagulls, relishing the stage and a pitch in excellent condition for the time of year, bossed the opening period to an extent which became almost embarrassing.

Five more goal attempts followed inside the first 35 minutes without reply. Another revised front pairing of Gary Hart and Jake Robinson, recalled to the starting line-up at the expense of Paul Reid, each went close with headers.

Robinson and the eyecatching Seb Carole also had shots pushed away by Fulop, on loan from Tottenham, while a further effort by Carole from outside the box missed by inches.

Did I forget to mention goalsaving tackles by Andrew Whing on Dean Hammond and Robert Page on Robinson?

Okay, Joel Lynch produced a challenge of similar value to foil Stern John at the other end, but you get the gist.

Wise, anonymous to this point, sneaked into the area to head in a left wing cross from Marcus Hall from 12 yards two minutes from the break.

Albion's sense of injustice was two-fold. Premiership referee Uriah Rennie had failed to spot a foul on the covering Guy Butters as he cleared into touch and Wise's goal originated from the resulting throwin.

"I thought it was a foul for the first goal," lamented Albion's veteran skipper. "I went to clear it into the stand and their fella caught me on the ankle. He apologised at halftime but the ref didn't see it. "It's the way it goes. When you are down at the bottom the luck doesn't go your way."

Coventry predictably improved after the break but Albion still should have been level before Wise, 39 years young, put the game beyond them.

A touch of composure was required when Robinson blazed over from a tight angle after Hammond got his head to a 65th-minute corner from Frutos.

Three minutes later it was all over. Lynch failed to clear when he had the chance and was then caught out of position as Whing was given freedom to progress into the area.

The fullback's fierce shot forced Henderson into a fine stop, only for the ball to rebound kindly off Wise's chest and into his path. A volley from point-blank range lifted his tally to four goals in three games and guaranteed Albion's fifth away defeat in a row.

Henderson, hobbling as a result of hurting his left hip when diving in vain to reach Wise's opening goal, made a breathtaking stop from James Scowcroft's late header to prevent the outcome becoming even more lopsided.

McGhee said: "I don't think we saw anything we didn't know. We played well, passed the ball well, created opportunities, but we don't have someone on the end of it.

"If Adebola and Stern John (Coventry's strikers) had been in our team then, with our first-half performance, we would have been out of sight by halftime."

Young Richard Martin was on the bench as cover for the hampered Henderson, with Michel Kuipers excluded due to his angry response to losing his place against Burnley four days earlier.

First it was Leon Knight, then Flo Chaigneau, now Kuipers twice (the first time at Southampton). Am I alone in getting fed up with hearing about players throwing their toys out of the pram just because they are not in the side?

The behaviour of the fitagain Alexis Nicolas has been contrastingly exemplary in similar circumstances - chats behind closed doors with the manager rather than heated reactions which are bound to reach the ears of a wider public, especially if, like Mark McCammon, you bizzarley decide to contribute to a radio phone-in.

It is ridiculous for McGhee's critics to suggest he has lost the dressing room. Finishing, not spirit, was the only ingredient missing from Albion's performance.

Lee Barnard can hopefully change that.

Everybody needs to be pulling in the same diretcion, including the Withdean faithful, with a six-pointer against Leicester next. That mansion may still be a long way off but so too is a return to that one-bed flat.

  • Albion (4-4-2): Henderson 7; El-Abd 7, McShane 7, Butters 7, Lynch 7; Carole 8, Carpenter 7, Hammond 7, Frutos 7; Robinson 7, Hart 7. Subs: McPhee for Robinson (withdrawn 70), Kazim-Richards for Frutos (withdrawn 70), Martin, Reid, Hinshelwood.
  • Coventry (4-4-2): Fulop; Whing, Williams, Page, Hall; Scowcroft, Doyle, Wise, McSheffrey; Adebola, Stern. Subs: Morrell for McSheffrey (ill 30), Hutchison for Adebola (withdrawn 69), Impey for Wise (withdrawn 90), Ince, Shaw.
  • Matchfacts
  • - Shots on goal: Albion 4 Coventry 7.

- Shots off goal: Albion 7 Coventry 1.

- Corners: Albion 3 Coventry 5.

- Offside: Albion 0 Coventry 4.

- Free-kicks: Albion 17 Coventry 9.

  • Albion bookings: none
  • Coventry booking: John (90) diving
  • Albion scorers: none
  • Coventry scorer: Wise (43), (68)