Brighton beat Doncaster to hit the ground running in Championship

Brighton's players must feel as though they are performing at Wembley this season, not just because of the arching stands which tower around them but also because of the pitch beneath their feet. The playing surface at their new home is vast and it suits the kind of sharp, solicitous passing game that the Albion manager, Gus Poyet, advocates. At 115 yards by 75, the pitch has exactly the same dimensions as the one at the national stadium. Even Old Trafford is a few inches narrower and shorter. Possession and patience are fundamental here, as Doncaster Rovers were taught in dramatic circumstances on Saturday. "It's huge, but the way we play it favours us," said the new Brighton midfielder Will Buckley, who came on to score two goals, the second, deep into eight minutes of injury time, handing a remarkable victory to Albion in their first competitive match at the stadium. "The philosophy is to play the ball on the floor and keep it local," he said. "We don't go running around for the ball when we've got it. We try to keep it well, like we did in the second half. Everything's going for us at this new ground so we've got to make it into a fortress." Buckley, a £1m acquisition from Watford in June, possesses the skill and self-assuredness to propel Brighton's resurgence. The 21-year-old's first strike was as crisp as they come, hit purposefully into the bottom corner from 20 yards. His second owed much to a through-ball from Craig Noone which sent him through for a one-on-one with Gary Woods. It was to be the last meaningful chance of the match and Buckley took it fearlessly. "Noone's absolutely brilliant. He's put the ball on a plate for me and I've had time to set myself, then I've opened my body and put it in the corner," he said. The Brighton fans were overwhelmed with delight, though Buckley admitted he scarcely knew how to celebrate. He said: "I'm not used to scoring two!" Poyet, who watched the second half from the press box, having been dismissed for a tirade at the officials when Kazenga LuaLua was booked for diving, was jubilant. After stints as an assistant at Swindon, Leeds and Tottenham, the Uruguayan has helped drag Brighton from the doldrums and looks to be shaping a side capable of Championship contention. Back to back promotions are now more talked about in the Brighton dressing room than the prospect of instant relegation. "Norwich is a team that gets mentioned all the time," said Buckley, referring to the Canaries' swift flight from League One to the Premier League. "There is a difference between League One and the Championship, but if the players are good enough…Everyone wants promotion but we don't want to get carried away. If we play like we did in the second half today we can be up there, definitely." Yet attractive play is no guarantor of results, as the Doncaster manager, Sean O'Driscoll, can attest. His side made steady progress following promotion to the Championship in 2008, but last season ended badly. Managing only three wins after New Year's Day left Rovers fighting for survival in May. The new season has not begun brightly. Saturday's defeat was merited as Rovers were outplayed in the second half. Though they led through Billy Sharp's close-range strike, Sharp had to leave the field on a stretcher before Brighton staged their comeback. James Coppinger also departed with a cluster of medics in tow. Those injuries will compound a busy week for the physios at the Keepmoat, who already have seven first-team players to nurse. "It always seemed destined to be a home win," said Buckley. "The fact that we got it in the manner we did was just brilliant."