Exeter City v Brighton & Hove Albion

Saturday, February 4th 1928.
EXETER CITY 0
BRIGHTON AND HOVE ALBION 3.
Attendance: 5,000.

St James's Park was waterlogged again today, rain having fallen heavily last night, and the playing conditions for Exeter City's home Football League game against Brighton were anything but ideal. A most encouraging reception was given the Grecians on their return from the north of England last evening, showing that the local succer public has well and truly appreciated the splendid fight put up by the City players in their fourth round F.A.Cup ties with Blackburn Rovers. One effect of the gruelling game at Ewood Park on Thursday was that McDevitt, Dent, and Miller were all doubtful starters today, and the City directors held Charlton, Lowton, and Phoenix in reserve. Eventually only one change was made, and that at centre forward, where Lowton was selected in preference to Dent. Brighton also made one alteration, Simpson appearing at outside right instead of Readman. St James's Park seemed strangely quiet today after all the excitement of the past few weeks, but there were 5,000 people present to give the Grecians a rousing reception. The fact that there was no band music at Blackburn last Thursday made the programme played by the Exeter City Military Band, under the conductorship of Mr George Newman, doubly enjoyable.

City: Holland; Pollard and Miller; Ditchburn, Mason, and Gee; Purcell, McDevitt, Lowton, Vaughan, and Compton.

Brighton: Williams; Jenkins and Curran; Wilkinson, Mooney, and Sykes; Simpson, James, Cook, Hopkins, and Wilson.

Referee: Mr A.J.Attwood, of Newport.

The Blackburn cup replay took its toll of the City today. The players were obviously tired from the start, and the game had not been long in progress before the result was a foregone conclusion. Cook scored Brighton's first goal after 25 minutes, slipping the ball past Holland as the goalkeeper advanced, and running it into the empty net. Five minutes later Hopkins scored with Exeter's defence all at sea. The referee disallowed this goal, presumably for offside, and in this decision the City were decidedly lucky. Four minutes before half time the ball was passed from man to man along the Brighton forward line with the home defenders unable to recover, and Hopkins scored a simple goal. With Miller off the field, injured, the scoring was completed in the ninth minute of the second half by Hopkins. Exeter would have made a really good fight of it if Lowton had shown talent for the role of centre forward, but this he was unable to do.

Southern League
EBBW VALE 1
EXETER CITY RESERVES 3.

In this Southern League match Andrews missed a penalty for "hands," shooting feebly and wide of the goal, but atoned by scoring twice before half-time. Parkin scored for the City after the interval, and Johnson replied for Ebbw Vale from a penalty kick awarded for a foul on Davis.