Match Report for BHA 1 Cardiff 1

Last updated : 20 October 2004 By Bob Gear

Lawrence brought on Lee Bullock in place of Joe Ledley in the 75th minute of a match dominated by the Welsh visitors.

Bullock had only been on the pitch for six minutes when he met Gary O'Neil's corner with a header which looped over Brighton keeper Michels Kuipers.

It was the least Cardiff deserved after falling behind in the 10th minute to Leon Knight's first goal from open play for Brighton since April.

Knight, fed inside the Cardiff area by Dean Hammond, scored with an angled left-foot drive which keeper Tony Warner got a hand to but could not prevent from crossing the line.

It was one-way traffic towards the Brighton goal after that as Cardiff pursued the victory they required to move above their hosts in the table.

Teenager Ledley, making his full league debut, will wonder how he did not celebrate his big night with a goal.

The midfielder could have scored a hat-trick in the closing stages of the first half. His back header from a free-kick from O'Neil forced Kuipers into a full length save at the expense of a corner.

When the corner was cleared to Ledley just outside the box, his shot was knocked off the line by Dan Harding.

The England Under-21 left-back came to Brighton's rescue again a minute later, clearing O'Neil's shot from the line after Kuipers had smothered at the feet of Jobi McAnuff.

Ledley could not believe his bad luck in first-half injury-time when he headed across from McAnuff against the bar