Albion have been finding ways to keep their young players busy.

And it is not just down to football and fitness training.

The Seagulls’ academy staff have been making it fun over a lay-off which runs to three months and might not end any time soon.

Some of the more light-hearted activities have included a Brighton’s Got Talent competition and some enthusiastic participation in the loo roll challenge which swept the nation early in lockdown.

Not all the young footballers will make it to centre stage at the Amex when they grow up.

But it looks like there are some who might have a second chance on other stages if they keep working!

Academy boss John Morling said: “One of the under-12s was DJing. Brilliant!

“There was someone playing guitar, someone doing skateboarding. Water-skiing, obviously from pre-lockdown.

“There is loads of stuff. Card tricks. People doing funny accents. When you watch them, it’s brilliant.

“And I think from a parent point of view, when you collate them and show what everyone has done, without a shadow of doubt it brings a smile to everyone.

“That is something we have got to keep trying to do and keep everything positive because some families are finding it hard for lots of different reason.

“From a football club perspective, we are doing all we can to try and help them in every way possible. There is some great stuff.”

There is a more serious benefit of players working on their own and learning self-motivation.

Albion have approximately 150 players across the age groups from under-23s down and are keeping them engaged.

Morling said: “We’ve tried to come up with innovative ideas. There might be tactical stuff where, as an example, the under-13s watched England against Brazil under-16s.

“They pick a player to analyse, or they pick Brazil’s shape - what was their shape when they were attacking? Things like that.

“From a visit to Borussia Dortmund, as an example, we set up tasks for our under-nine and ten goalies against their under-nine and ten goalies, 11s and 12s, 13s and 14s.

“They had to recreate sessions, including their parents or siblings, and then you mark them, and you have a competition, obviously Brighton against Borussia Dortmund, but England-Germany. A little bit of fun as well, makes it a little bit different.

“Obviously at the start of it, everyone’s doing the loo roll challenge and it’s gone on from there.

“It’s ten weeks now since that’s happened but new things have been going on. I’ve touched on the Brighton’s Got Talent stuff.

“You see the players in a totally different light to what you would have done.

“From a coaching perspective, I think we always say, ‘You’ve got to know Johnny to coach Johnny’ and in some ways this has helped.”