Brighton and Hove Albion goal scoring debuts
Brighton and Hove Albion’s record signing Jurgen Locadia marked his debut with a goal in the 3-1 victory over Coventry City, sending large sections of the Albion’s fan base into overdrive.
Our favourite comment came on Facebook from one deranged supporter, claiming that Locadia would be as good as Harry Kane based on his performance against a side in midtable in League Two.
Sure, he scored a tidy finish, but a goal on your debut doesn’t necessarily mean you are going to go on to have a long and fruitful career in the stripes.
Here are six players who scored on their debuts who Locadia would do well to follow in the footsteps in, and six for whom netting on their first appearance was about as good as their Albion careers got…
Peter Ward – Hereford United 1-1 Brighton, 27/03/76
The ultimate debut from the ultimate Albion striker. Signed for £4,000 from Burton Albion in May the previous year, Peter Ward had to wait 10 months to make his first appearance in a Brighton shirt. He scored within 60 seconds at Hereford United, ended the season with five goals in eight games and the rest is history.
Bobby Zamora – Brighton 1-1 Plymouth Argyle, 12/02/00
With Brentford having snatched Lorenzo Pinamonte from under the Albion’s noses, Micky Adams needed a new striker on loan. Step forward Bobby Zamora from Bristol Rovers. His debut goal was the first of six in six games that persuaded the Albion to fork out £100,000 for him in the summer, after which goals and trophies flowed at Withdean.
Darren Freeman – Brighton 6-0 Mansfield Town, 07/08/99
After two seasons playing “home” games in Gillingham, the Albion marked their first game back in Brighton at Withdean with a 6-0 win over Mansfield with Brighton-born Darren Freeman scoring a hat-trick on his debut after a summer transfer from Brentford. He went onto end the season as top scorer, but unfortunately injury meant we didn’t see much of him after that.
Leon Knight – Oldham Athletic 1-3 Brighton, 09/08/03
With Bobby Zamora sold to Tottenham Hotspur for £1.5m following relegation from the second tuier, Brighton needed a new talisman forward. Step forward Leon Knight, who marked his debut on-loan from Chelsea with both goals in a 3-1 win at Oldham Athletic. Knight would go onto fire the Albion back to the Championship at the first time of asking via the play offs, making him a Seagulls success even if his career did nosedive spectacularly after he left Withdean.
Garry Nelson – Brighton 1-0 York City, 15/08/87
Garry Nelson marked his Albion debut with the only goal against York City and would go onto score 32 in the 1987-88 promotion season, a total only bettered in a single campaign by two other players in Brighton history. He later confirmed club legend status by becoming one of the Archer-Bellotti regimes biggest critics from afar.
Leonardo Ulloa – Brighton 2-3 Arsenal, 26/01/13
Locadia is in good company for scoring on his debut in the FA Cup. Leonardo Ulloa managed the same feat in 2013 when Arsenal came to town in the fourth round, scoring with his head in a sight that would become extremely familiar over the following 18 months – and hopefully the next three as well.
Darius Henderson – Oldham Athletic 1-3 Brighton, 09/08/03
On loan Reading striker Darius Henderson was the other forward to make his debut alongside Leon Knight on the opening day of the 2003-04 season. His time at Withdean didn’t go quite as well as his strike partner, managing to score only two penalties during a couple of months under Steve Coppell before losing his place to the talents of Chris McPhee.
Maheta Molango – Reading 3-2 Brighton, 07/08/2004
Maheta Molango arrived at Withdean after being released by SV Wacker Burghausen of Germany. He hardly seemed like the type of striker who would aid the Albion’s bid to stay in the Championship with that sort of pedigree, but a goal after 14 seconds away at Reading had everyone dreaming. Unfortunately, it turned out to be his only goal for the club.
Aidan Newhouse – Brighton 6-0 Mansfield Town, 07/08/99
Darren Freeman might have got a hat-trick on the opening day of the 1999-00 season, but substitute Aidan Newhouse also had a debut to remember as he scored twice from the bench to suggest he had a bright future at the Albion. He didn’t. One start and nine further sub appearances later and he was off to Sutton United.
Lee Johnson – Brighton 2-0 Cardiff City, 05/12/00
The current Bristol City manager played once and only once for Brighton, scoring in a 2-0 LDV Vans Trophy win over Cardiff City in the 2000-01 season. He was never seen again, not even as an unused substitute, before moving to Yeovil Town where his father, Gary, was manager.
Mark Chamberlain – Brighton 1-1 Plymouth Argyle, 20/08/94
The former England striker arrived at the Goldstone on a short term deal in the summer of 1994 as his career drew to a close. He scored on his debut against Plymouth which persuaded Liam Brady to give him a contract until the end of the season, which yielded a return of a grand total of three goals in 24 games.
Matt Heath – Leyton Orient 2-1 Brighton, 07/03/09
Russell Slade’s first game in charge saw him play five loan players, one of whom was defender Matt Heath who marked his debut with the Albion’s goal. Signed from Colchester, he played six times, marking his final game with a red card in a 2-0 defeat away at Scunthorpe.
