Nicky Forster fired Albion to the brink of a play-off place with a collector's item.

Forster's first half header cancelled out Craig Easton's early opener for Swindon and his rare free-kick after the break lifted the Seagulls up to seventh in the League One table.

Albion's 19-goal talisman takes the penalties but not normally free-kicks.

Forster, 34, revealed: "Believe it or not I had only ever taken one before, from exactly the same sort of position for Reading.

"I cannot remember who it was against but I hit the corner of the bar, so I have now scored one and hit the woodwork with the other.

"It was from a position where it wasn't easy to deliver a cross into the box. We thought from that angle it might be worth a shot and I just said I would have a go.

"I was delighted to see it go in. It was a valuable three points - we needed to win.

"It keeps the pressure on the teams above us and we are in a nice position. We have got two tough away games now (Nottingham Forest on Monday and Leeds on Saturday) so let's hope we can pick up some points on the road."

Boss Dean Wilkins said: "I am not sure what Nicky's goal target is but maybe he could revise it now. We expected him to get to 20 and that was not putting him under pressure - that was just knowing the player that he is."

Wilkins was delighted with the debut in central midfield of Frenchman Therry Racon, drafted in on loan from Charlton for the rest of the season.

"I thought defensively he was sharp and competitive in the air," Wilkins said. "He was aggressive in his tackling and when he got the ball he moved it very quickly. I think we have got a competent, all-round footballer."

Would you like to see Nicky Forster take more free kicks?