Oh what’s occurring? Brighton drawn against Cardiff in Carabao Cup

Oh what’s occurring? The draw for the second round of the Carabao Cup has taken place with Brighton & Hove Albion making the trip to Cardiff, a city some 10.9 miles from the popular holiday resort of Barry Island.

It will be the first meeting between Seagulls and Bluebirds since Cardiff were a Premier League side in the 2018-19 season. Despite being relegated at the end of the campaign, Neil Warnock masterminded two wins over the Albion including a 2-0 victory at the Amex in April on a night when many supporters began to openly question Chris Hughton for the first time.

Brighton and Cardiff have met once previously in the Carabao Cup. That came in the first round of the competition in 2007-08 season, when a grand total of 87 Albion fans made the Tuesday night trip to Ninian Park.

That evening holds fond memories for the WAB Team as we managed to leave Haywards Heath at 4pm, negotiate the M25 and M4 in rush hour and make it to Cardiff by 7.30pm in a tiny Fiat Punto. The reward for such dedication? A 1-0 defeat in extra time.

Overall, there have been 77 matches between Brighton and the Bluebirds. The head-to-head is pretty even, 28 Albion victories to 25 for Cardiff and 24 draws.

The home side has tended to dominate the fixture. Brighton only won seven times in 33 attempts at Ninian Park and their record at the new Cardiff City Stadium is two wins from six and none in the Welsh capital since 2013.

Cardiff away does at least present the opportunity of a cracking night out for those supporters braving the trip. There is also the possibility that Graham Potter will take the competition relatively seriously, as he did last season when naming strong starting XIs in a memorable run to the fourth round.

The Albion swatted aside League One Portsmouth 4-0 at the Amex before picking up a first ever victory at Deepdale, winning 2-0 against Preston North End.

That set up a clash with Manchester United. Unsurprisingly, the Red Devils’ second string proved too good for Brighton’s and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s side ran out comfortable 3-0 winners.

Cardiff saw off Football League newcomers Sutton United to reach the second round of this year’s competition. The tie will take place in the week commencing August 23rd, giving us a fortnight to brush up on our Welsh beyond knowing that Bryn is Welsh for hill.