Has 2011 been your best year following the Albion?

[wallyback]

not up there with the late 70's yet

but 2012 and 2013 have enormous potential!

 

[Jameson]

Yes; and I've pretty much seen it all since 1969. I've had some wonderful times following this club; I've also suffered the despair and personal issues (football related) that come as part of the package. I think what makes this so much better than Div 1, Wembley, packed terraces etc is that for the first time we have the best quality facilities ever, a place we call home and can be proud of (and can take wives/daughters/granny along without fear) that truly represents our club in the best possible way. I have never felt so positive and proud of Brighton and Hove Albion. If I die tomorrow I will go to my grave content.

 

[El Presidente]

I'm with the 77-79 brigade. Seeing Wardy SLALOM his way past defenders with a wiggle of the hips, with Lawrenson winning everything at the back and Nobby showing true leadership from a captain has not been surpassed.

 

[ROSM]

I didnt go enough in the 77 to 79 era to really claim it as others have done. So for me, I have to vote yes.

On an entirely self indulgent level in the last 12 months I have seen some fantastic football (for example the 3 home league games in a row where we scored 4 or more goals), the realisation of the falmer dream that I can claim some small involvement in and feel I contributed towards, I have two children who are Albion mad and want to watch, play and talk the seagulls all day long and attend games in safety with me. And as a club we have the potential to achieve more than we ever have done.

 

[Southern Scouse]

No. I really enjoyed the year we got promoted to the old Division 1. Seagulls Specials, arguably a better atmosphere, proper football - no cheating (not by us!), proper tackles, muddy pitches and dare I say less pernickety referee's. I also enjoyed the first year in Division 1 for the same reasons and the experience.

My own thoughts exactly. Anyone remember being on the Seagull Special returning from our first game in Div One away to Villa, and the train being pelted by Birmingham fans on one side and Leeds (I think on the other)? As you said, proper football! We had a great team in my eyes at least.

 

[Mackenzie]

1987/88 was my favourite year, 14 years old following Brighton home and away, beers on the train, winning every week and promotion. This year has been great, but living in the middle of Wales and trying to support my family has proved a bit of an obstacle. It does however make my rare trips to the Amex so much more of a treat. I love it!

 

[hans kraay fan club]

I find it very difficult to think of calendar years, rather than seasons, but for me this past 12 months ranks up there with my previous favourite SEASON, which was the 87? one when we got promoted in 2nd with Nelson and Bremner up front. I loved that season - we had a decent team, Nelson was superb, and it was the first year I went to almost every game home and away. I was about 16 at the time and loved the whole thing. Great times.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Ha - apart from the WALES bit, North Stand Nutter could almost be me.

 

[Silent Bob]

Yes, by miles.

I've seen us win three titles and four promotions, this years was by far the best for the quality of football we played and how much we won it by, the quality of players on display, and the whole feel of the club. The move to the new stadium has just been incredible, it's as big a moment as any in the entire history of the club. There are so many great memories there already, Doncaster obviously, the Burnley atmosphere and general craziness of the game, the winner against Forest, beating Sunderland, playing Liverpool (again for the younger generation of fan the biggest side we've seen us play) and giving a great account of ourselves.

Going back to last season, the incredible games against Carlsile and Dagenham, Bennett's goal at Walsall to seal the title, 8 wins out of 8 in March, Gus singing we're f***ing brilliant... we've probably had about 10 years worth of these moments in 2011.

We've had a few average and poor performances this season, but all of those bar one will be forgotten in the long run. Of course if we continue on our upward trajectory 2011 could be bettered but no year will feel like quite such a transformation.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Voted No. Despite all that has happened both on and off the pitch, 2011 hasn't quite hit the spot for some reason. Absolutely no idea why.

 

[Lincoln Imp]

77/78, apart from the very end, closely followed by 76/77 and 78/79. They were seasons of huge passion and excitement and commitment to the cause, all of which have seemed oddly lacking on recent occasions. Didn't enjoy 82/83 - apart from the obvious highlights - because we were chucking away our finest achievements.

 

[catfish]

I'd go for 76/77 - we routinely destroyed the opposition with some breathtaking attacking footy. And of course Wardy broke the scoring record.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Voted No. Despite all that has happened both on and off the pitch, 2011 hasn't quite hit the spot for some reason. Absolutely no idea why.

Because you're an ungrateful miserabilist?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Because you're an ungrateful miserabilist?

Not really. Absolutely love the new stadium, goes without saying. Grateful! With knobs on! However... on the pitch, last season, I was probably the biggest earliest critic of the brainless Ankergren-Elphick-El-Abd eternal triangle that always ended up in a HOOF! upfield to the opposition. Got eternally shouted down for daring to question the emperor's new clothes, by dullards who mistook the brainless triangle for a passing game. I can understand why the dullards were so pitifully grateful for anything that wasn't overtly hoofball, but to me it was just another form of hoofball. I think this season has confirmed that. Come back and tell me about it when our beautiful passing game gets over the halfway line.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Not really. Absolutely love the new stadium, goes without saying. Grateful! With knobs on! However... on the pitch, last season, I was probably the biggest earliest critic of the brainless Ankergren-Elphick-El-Abd eternal triangle that always ended up in a HOOF! upfield to the opposition. Got eternally shouted down for daring to question the emperor's new clothes, by dullards who mistook the brainless triangle for a passing game. I can understand why the dullards were so pitifully grateful for anything that wasn't overtly hoofball, but to me it was just another form of hoofball. I think this season has confirmed that. Come back and tell me about it when our beautiful passing game gets over the halfway line.

So you don't feel it WORKED last year then?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

So you don't feel it WORKED last year then?

Southampton were WAY better than us when they finally got their act together. No way were we the best team in that division. Same as when we beat Reading to the title that time. Both Southampton and Reading continued their progression, whereas we were found out both times for punching above our weight. Absolutely no shame in that whatsoever, but needs acknowledging for what it was.

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

So you don't feel it WORKED last year then?

It was definitely not the passing between the defenders and goalkeeper that got us promotion last season.

 

[The Notorious BHA]

Easily my best year. This is my 10th year supporting Albion, so being only 16, the only other memory that could top this would be being in the Championship last time round, and of course that didn't end up the way we planned. So with the whole "Amex experience", Gus, new players, Tony Bloom, winning league 1(Let us not forget that!) and now being in the top half of the Championship, planning to be submitted for new £15m training ground, expansion of the Amex. Yeah it's been a pretty good year, quite happy with that..

 

[Cheshire]

The vote will probably be split depending on age. You do have to go some to beat 2011 as an Albion supporter, but like many who have already posted and lived through the glory years period it does not equal the 1977+ period. However, if Gus is our modern day Clough/Taylor/Mullery rolled into one then maybe 2012 or 2013 will be a very real challenge to that period of old?

 

[hans kraay fan club]

It was definitely not the passing between the defenders and goalkeeper that got us promotion last season.

Not directly, obviously. In part though, I think that it was. Those 'pointless' triangles, set a tempo to our overall play that was different to everybody else in the league, and I think it helped our players believe that they were capable of actually RETAINING the ball all over the pitch.