Brighton & Hove Albion 1 Yeovil Town 2

Yeovil Town defied the odds as they battled to a well-earned victory over Brighton at the Withdean Stadium.

The Glovers headed to Sussex to take on an Albion side boasting a 100 per cent home league record without a host of players through injury.

Steve Mildenhall and Matt Rose were both ruled out, joining Gary Dempsey, Lee Morris, Justin Cochrane and Marvin Williams on the sidelines.

But Yeovil exceeded expectations as goals from Lloyd Owusu and Paul Warne put them 2-0 ahead by half-time.

And although the Seagulls hit back after the break with a Dean Hammond penalty, the Glovers comfortably held on for three points.

Town manager Russell Slade handed debuts to loan signings Romain Larrieu, who lined up in goal and Simon Gillett, who played on the right wing in a 4-5-1 formation.

Larrieu replaced the injured Mildenhall, while skipper Terry Skiverton returned to the side in place of Rose, with Terrell Forbes moving to right-back.

Brighton threatened in the early stages through Nicky Forster and Andy Whing, but it was the Glovers who went ahead on 15 minutes.

Nathan Jones, returning to the club where he enjoyed three promotions, crossed from the left and found Owusu in the six-yard box.

The big striker kept his cool and ignored shouts of offside as he calmly slotted the ball past keeper Michel Kuipers from close range.

The hosts tried to hit back, with midfielder George O'Callaghan volleying just wide from 20 yards, while Forster headed wide when well placed.

But the best chance fell to Hammond on 22 minutes when he latched on to a Bas Savage header but then screwed his shot wide with just Larrieu to beat.

Albion left-back Matt Richards saw a fierce drive deflect just wide off Savage but after repelling a series of Brighton attacks, Yeovil doubled their lead two minutes before half-time.

Owusu held the ball up brilliantly following a long clearance and then found Warne with a pinpoint cross, with the former Oldham striker finding the bottom corner of the net with a first time shot.

Yeovil came close to a third goal on 53 minutes, with Kuipers saving well from Gillett and then reacting superbly to stop Owusu converting the rebound.

But Brighton found a way back into the game just after the hour mark when Warne handled a free-kick from Dean Cox.

Hammond stroked the resulting penalty into the corner of the net to give the Seagulls hope of rescuing a point.

But Hammond then wasted a good opening when he headed straight at Larrieu before Owusu spurned an opportunity to make the game safe for Yeovil when he allowed Kuipers to save from close range.

There was a late scare for the Glovers when Hammond found space at the back post from a Jake Robinson cross, but Larrieu and Forbes combined to shut him out and help send Yeovil up to fourth spot in League One.