Injury-hit Hornets held by Brighton (From This Is Local London)

Injury-hit Hornets held by Brighton

5:09pm Saturday 3rd December 2005 in

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WATFORD boss Aidy Boothroyd has repeatedly insisted that he will not sell Ashley Young in the upcoming transfer market and the young striker's value was laid bare for all to see at Vicarage Road this afternoon as injury forced him out of the disappointing 1-1 draw with second-from-bottom Brighton.

A fairly dire first-half was brought to life in injury time when Marlon King sweetly fired a toothless Watford ahead but Guy Butters levelled early in the second-half with a superb header.

King should have won it for Watford soon after but saw his penalty saved although defeat would have been tough on a battling Brighton side.

Boothroyd was able to welcome back Clarke Carlisle and the fit-again James Chambers, but lost Lloyd Doyley (thigh), Matthew Spring (food poisoning) and Young (ankle). This meant Jordan Stewart and Al Bangura retained their places from the draw at Preston, while Joel Grant came in on the right-hand side of midfield with Paul Devlin pushing up to partner King.

Brighton, meanwhile, made two changes from the team which drew 0-0 at Derby last time out and both were up front, with Jake Robinson and Colin Kazim-Richards replacing Leon Knight and Chris McPhee, who both dropped to the bench.

With so many enforced changes, perhaps it was not surprising that Watford took time to settle and Brighton made the brighter start.

The lively Kazim-Richards forced Ben Foster into the first save of the match on ten minutes, stooping low to hold onto the Brighton forward's drive from the edge of the area.

Devlin then curled a left-footed shot over from 20 yards on 16 minutes after turning his man well but chances at either end were at a premium.

Robinson had the game's first clear opportunity on 20 minutes when Alex Frutos' corner from the left was half-cleared by Clarke Carlisle and the Brighton striker blasted over on the half-volley from 12 yards, wide to the right of goal.

Devlin nearly flicked a Malky Mackay header from a McNamee corner past Alan Blayney on 26 minutes but the Brighton keeper did well to gather.

But Brighton should have taken the lead on 29 minutes. Mackay attempted to header a throughball back to Foster but the pass fell short, playing Robinson in. However, the on-loan Manchester United keeper did superbly well to dive at the feet of Robinson and push the ball away.

Devlin wasted a good opportunity after playing a neat one-two with Grant but over-hitting his cross from just inside the Brighton box but he did delver a dangerous cross a few minutes later when Bangura did well to break up a Brighton attack although the visitors' defence stood firm.

Jordan Stewart cleared a Dean Hammond effort off the line two minutes from the break and, from the rebound, Gavin Mahon did well to deflect Adam El-Abd's shot from ten yards over.

But Watford took the lead in the one and only minute of injury time. Mackay floated a long ball forward from the centre circle. King controlled the ball on the edge of the box with his chest, back to goal. After turning the central defenders, the on-loam Forest striker drove the ball past Blayney into the centre of the goal.

Half-time; Watford 1 Brighton 0 Buoyed by the goal, Watford looked sharper after the break and McNamee lost his marker in the box but sent his diving header over after good work from Devlin on the right.

But Brighton levelled four minutes into the second-half. From a free-kick wide on the left, Butters superbly guided a header from the penalty spot over Foster and in off the underside of the cross-bar.

King then passed up a glorious chance to fire Watford ahead on 58 minutes when he saw his penalty saved. From Devlin's free-kick on the right, Carlisle's goal-bound header was clearly handled by Butters. However, King's tame penalty was parried by Blayney, who dived low to his left, and the keeper then gathered the rebound.

Grant then passed up an equally good opportunity midway through the second-half. McNamee worked his way to the left-hand side byline and his deep cross was pulled back across goal by Devlin to Grant but, from eight yards, the youngster wildly fired the half-volley over.

Without a recognised forward on the bench, Boothroyd threw central defender Jay DeMerit up-front with 20 minutes remaining in an effort to win the points.

McNamee beat three players and cut into the box before being crowded out as Watford threw everything at the visitors.

The Hornets forced a succession of corners and got the ball into the box at every opportunity but were unable to create any clear-cut chances as the visitors deservedly held out for the draw.

Watford: Foster; Chambers, Carlisle, Mackay, Stewart; Grant, Bangura, Mahon, McNamee; King, Devlin. Substitutes: DeMerit for Grant after 28 mins. Chamberlain, Diagouraga, Mariappa, Gill not used.

Brighton & Hove Albion: Blayney; Hart, El-Abd, Butters, Reid; Carole, Oatway, Hammond, Frutos; Robinson, Kazim-Richards. Substitutes: Knight for Robinson and McPhee for Kazim-Richards after 62 mins; Nicolas for Carole after 81 mins. Mayo, Chaigneau not used.

Bookings: Reid for a foul on Devlin after 56 mins; Butters for handball after 58 mins. Hart for handball after 84 mins; Attendance: 14,455.

Referee: Ray Olivier (Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands).