Brighton and Hove Albion are currently 8 points clear of third place in the Championship.
Gary Dicker spent more than 4 years at Brighton, winning promotion from League One and finishing in the Championship play-off places. The midfielder spoke exclusively to HITC Sport about his time on the south coast, his departure from the Amex and his expectations of the Seagulls this season.
The 30-year-old former Ireland under-21 international made more than 125 league appearances for Brighton. A regular starter for two seasons under Russell Slade and Gus Poyet in League One, his Brighton career was stalled by leg break in October 2011 which ruled him out for 6 months.
It wasn’t the end of his Brighton career though, as Dicker returned to action in April 2012, making 6 appearances at the end of the 2011/12 season and a further 26 in the 2012/13 campaign in which Brighton made the play-offs.
Gary Dicker celebrates with Leo Ulloa at Brighton
That would prove to be Dicker’s final season at the club, and it was a departure which disappointed the midfielder, who describes his time at Brighton as both “the best” and the “most challenging” of his career.
“I have fond memories of Brighton. It was the best time in my career but also the most challenging. The club just grew overnight really, with a new owner and manager coming in.”
It was certainly a period of rapid change at Brighton, with a new stadium also being pivotal in the Seagulls meteoric rise and a statement of their ambition. A starter in Brighton’s final game at the Withdean Stadium, Dicker witnessed this change first hand and from within.
Dicker started in Brighton’s last game at the Withdean
Given the rise that Brighton were on during Dicker’s time at the club, he was unsurprisingly disappointed when his contract wasn’t renewed at the end of the 2012/13 season, along with a number of other teammates.
“It was just one of those things unfortunately. A few of the players were left in limbo as there was no manager there at the time. The manager would normally make those kind of decisions but in this case it was left up to the chairman.”
Dicker still has close ties to Brighton with his family living in the seaside resort, and the former midfielder told us he still tries to watch the team as often as he can, whether that be on TV or whilst he is back in the area. When asked about the Seagulls promotion chances, Dicker seemed very confident.
The midfielder is a big admirer of Brighton boss Chris Hughton
“I think they’ll do it this year. When you look at the team compared to last year they’ve just got a bit more depth and a strong bench which I think will help them. I hear some people saying it’s an easy job for Chris Hughton at Brighton, but there’s no such thing as an easy job. He probably got some undue criticism at Norwich; he’s come in, steadied the ship and he’s a successful manager.”
The former Stockport County man said he found it difficult to compare the current Brighton side with the squad of players that he reached the playoffs with more than three years ago.
“It’s a tough question. We had a good squad, and we also had good depth. Both are talented and I think both had some really strong wingers, particularly Knockaert in the current side, he’s been a good signing.”
Dicker, who initially joined Brighton on-loan before becoming a regular with the Seagulls, is now playing his club football for Kilmarnock in the Scottish Premiership, and he also shared with us his experiences north of the border. You can read that interview with the Irishman here.
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