Sky Sports have come calling. Again.
Albion’s final home game of the season — that little low-key affair against Liverpool — has been moved for live TV coverage. Originally scheduled for the weekend, it will now kick off at 8pm on Monday 19th May, giving fans across the country a chance to watch Liverpool try to ruin our European charge, if it’s still going, under the lights.
It’s great news for the broadcasters, who will no doubt get some moody drone shots of the Pier and a wide angle of the Amex looking dramatic in the dark. It’s slightly less great news for thousands of Albion fans with jobs, children, or an inconvenient fondness for public transport.
The game will finish around 10pm. The lap of appreciation — that moment of semi-awkward waving where players and fans pretend they’re not all already thinking about summer — will still take place. Just at roughly 11:45pm, in front of whichever brave souls are left in the ground. Probably the same 17 who once watched us draw nil-nil with Hartlepool and called it character-building.
Add in the post-match traffic, long snaking queues at Falmer Station, and the usual inexplicable delays at Brighton Station, and most supporters should make it home in time to wave at Tuesday.
Still, under the lights, at the Amex, with nothing to lose and everything to shout about — it’s not the worst way to sign off the home campaign for another season.
It’s not a popular move amongst the Albion fanbase – what do you think?
Bring your sleeping bag and some caffeine tablets – you might be there a while.
