Charlie Oatway has praised senior Albion professionals for helping the club’s young prospects learn the ropes.

The former Seagulls midfielder, now a coach, is in charge of the reserve side which won their Combination division by going unbeaten in their 11 games to date.

Oatway’s team which beat Leyton Orient 1-0 to secure top spot on Tuesday afternoon was largely a development line-up, plus long-serving Gary Hart, who got the only goal, and experienced goalkeeper Michael Poke.

It has been a similar story for much of the season as prospects such as Lewis Dunk, George Barker, Torbjorn Agdestein, Cristian Baz, Agustin Battipiedi and Jake Forster-Caskey are encouraged to play the Gus Poyet way.

The traditional function of the reserve team, as a place for out-of-favour senior pros to work up a sweat, has been adapted as part of Poyet’s ongoing evolution of the club.

Which is why Oatway is pleased enough with the title but more delighted with the way members of Luke Williams’ development set-up are progressing, often against more experienced opponents.

He is convinced they will be equipped for decent careers, even if those careers have to come away from The Amex.

That is where senior players like Hart, out of the first team picture, and Poke, relegated to the bench when Casper Ankergren arrived on the eve of the season, have a mentoring role.

Oatway said: “Harty has been fantastic for us. Same with Pokey. They probably thought they did not have a big role to play at the club.

“But they are out there helping us get the reserves moving in the right direction for this club.

“It’s not really about winning the title. It’s about building and developing a team who play in the same way as the first team.”

Oatway insists he is quite happy to play seniors if necessary.

Whoever turns out can be confident Poyet and his assistant Mauricio Taricco will be keeping a close eye on how they are doing, which is another plus.

He added: “You have to keep in mind which players need games.

“Sometimes we will have senior players who were on the bench for the first team and need to play. That’s not a problem.

“Sometimes it will be more of a development team.

“The good thing about this football club is the players cannot complain we are not making an informed decision about them.

“It’s not just me or Luke making a decision.

“The gaffer and Tano come to nearly every game.

“That’s a big thing for the boys in the reserve team when they see them there watching.”

Albion must decide in the coming weeks whether they keep some of the players who helped them top the table.

Former Spurs midfielder Yaser Kasim and last season’s Aston Villa youth team skipper Ryan Simmonds are among those who signed until the end of this season.

Oatway said: “It’s decision time. We know that. This is the horrible part of the job.

“It’s about opinions. We have got some fantastic professionals here.

“If anyone gets released, and I say ‘if’ not ‘when’, I am sure they will find a club elsewhere.

“That is my personal opinion.”