The Albion players were due to report back for pre-season training today, with a much changed squad with fifteen players leaving the club following the great escape of two months ago.

The majority of the fifteen played little or no part in helping to keep the Seagulls in League One – with Kerry Mayo heading that particular column after 14 years of distinguished service which included two championships and a play-off final win. Following Mayo out of the door were Chris Birchall, who unbelieavably managed to secure a contract alongisde David Beckham at Los Angeles Galaxy, Jason Jarrett, Seb Carole, Sam Gargan, Kane Louis, Andy Pearson, Dan Royce and Kane Wills. John Sullivan, who looked like he had finally made the breakthrough into the first team following a reasonably successful run of games in Michel Kuipers annual injury-based absence, was also not offered a new contract and has found himself signing on at Millwall. Adam Hinshelwoods four year stay in the Albion treatment room is also over, ironically when he looked like he was finally returning to fitness, and the prospect of a return to the form that saw him called up for the England Under 21 squad won’t be witnessed at Withdean, and neither will the realisation of the undoubted potential Jake Robinson has, as another season in which he failed to realise it has seen him move on to Shrewsbury

The suprising releases came in the form of Tommy Fraser and Doug Loft. Fraser’s workmanlike performances and ability to do the simple things made him an important player in the run in, but it may also have been his downfall – if the Albion really want to kick on and reach the Championship, then ability wise he is probably not going to be good enough to do so. Loft got his long-awaited chance and looked like a player capable of playing in League One, yet he too has been deemed surplus to requirements by Russ. Both have, bizarely, teamed up with Micky Adams at Port Vale – a manager who in his disastrous second reign as Seagulls boss was reluctant to pick either in his starting 11.

The fifteenth departure is definitely the most disapointing – goal machine Lloyd Owusu fleeing the country like a convict to go down under and play for Adelaide United. With Glenn Murray unsettled and Nicky Forster soon going to require the use of a stair lift to make it down the steps onto the pitch, the big question remains – who is going to be making the onion bag bulge?

Russell’s signing haven’t really answered that question. Gary Dicker played a huge part in the end of last seasons form, and he signs on permanently from Stockport, along with James Tunnicliffe, a defender who is bloody huge and can play on the right side or in the centre. He also had trials with Liverpool, which means he must be good. Gary Crofts has also joined on a free transfer, and is quite a coo in that with his signing, the Albion have snapped up Gillinghams all time most capped player on a free transfer – namely 12 appearances for the might of Wales. He too is a central midfielder, and alongside Dicker should put an end to the nonsense of Adam El Abd or Adam Virgo playing in midfield

And that is really all there is to say on the summers moving and shaking so far – too many people made the mistake last season of bigging up all of Micky Adams signings, and when they inevitably turned out to be as useful as giving the kiss of life to a rasher of bacon, the optimism that followed their capture lead to their general ineptitude being even more disapointing. So by just expecting the worst from the new boys, hopefully everyone will be pleasantly suprised. And lets be honest, Slade can’t do a worse job in the market than Adams – unless he decides to visit one of the cattle variety and give Hawkins a mate to keep him company in his stable