Winning ugly could help rescue Albion's season

It has been relatively easy in recent seasons to assess the success of managers at the Albion - the distinct lines drawn after a particular campaign, or a style that you can associate with the man in charge.

This season will, of course, be very different with the departure of Sami Hyypia and we can only take Chris Hughton on his current run of just nine games in all competitions.

The last two games have resulted in 0-0 draws - but, as one texter to the Final Whistle pointed out, they could be very valuable come May. They haven't been entertaining and neither Cardiff City, nor Sheffield Wednesday, can be classed as top sides.

But, the grit required to eke out a point could be vital. Under Gus Poyet, the Seagulls had a trait that was very evident. They rarely gave away leads, but similarly struggled to gain points after going behind. His team's "possession" game made this no real surprise.

Johnny Byrne, my former colleague at BBC Sussex and ex-Albion striker, used to get frustrated by the way the game was being played under Gus and, at times, fans echoed his view saying they found it dull and boring.The Uruguayan could justify it, however, by the results and a top-six finish.

It is somewhat early to remark on this season, but there are a few indicators of where it may have been going wrong: the Albion have gained seven points from losing positions and lost 16 (13 under Hyypia) from winning positions. It appears Chris Hughton quickly identified the need for more experience in midfield and Beram Kayal has showed promising early signs.

Holding onto leads and clawing back a point here and there will be key across the next 15 games.

A few more 0-0s may help, but they will certainly have to win a fair few in between, if they are to hold on to their Championship status.Two victories against Birmingham and Leeds would do very nicely. Back-to-back league wins have been achieved twice this season, once under each manager.

Time to win ugly.