Brighton 5 Barnsley 1: Hill accepts Barnsley will have to lick wounds after mauling

He confessed: “We had 12 players out but I have no excuses whatsoever. It was inept and I include myself in that.”

Hill was disappointed that his men gave Brighton the opportunity to win the game by a more comfortable margin than he felt they should have.

He said: “The opposition were excellent and it could have been up to 10-1. There was not too much I could say to the players as it was disappointing they did not accept the challenge before the game.

“We were up against two very good wingers but Brighton also had (Saltor) Bruno and (Wayne) Bridge, so it was like we were facing four wingers.

“But we can’t change it. Sometimes you have to stomach it and move on. Hopefully we will learn and grow stronger.”

Hill was keen to point out that Barnsley’s budget does not match Brighton’s and his club have been fighting against the odds to avoid relegation for the last “six or seven years”.

He added: “We can’t afford to sign the likes of Bruno, Bridge or (Andrew) Crofts who have come to Brighton. We can’t go out and buy like Brighton and Hull. We intend to fight against the odds and for the last seven years we have been doing that.”

His opposite number Gus Poyet believes he has a better team than last season after watching Brighton thrash Barnsley.

The Seagulls went into the game having not scored in their previous three league and cup matches but they found their shooting boots against a poor Barnsley side.

Brighton were 2-0 up after only 14 minutes with goals from Ashley Barnes and former England defender Bridge, with Barnsley goalkeeper David Gonzalez at fault on both occasions.

Gonzalez, who played briefly for the Seagulls last season, dropped a free-kick by Craig Noone for Barnes to tap in after three minutes and Bridge beat the Colombian to his left with a low drive.

Barnsley pulled a goal back with a 36th-minute penalty from Craig Davies after Crofts fouled Jacob Mellis, but Craig Mackail-Smith got the final touch on Barnes’s shot a minute later.

Record signing Mackail-Smith struck again four minutes after the break with a close-range header and Barnes completed the rout nine minutes from time by drilling in a cross.

Brighton: Kuszczak, Bruno, Greer, El-Abd, Bridge, Crofts (Harley 70), Dicker, Bridcutt, Noone (LuaLua 70), Mackail-Smith, Barnes (Agdestein 84). Unused substitutes: Ankergren, Dunk, Calderon, Barker.

Barnsley: Gonzalez, Foster, Wiseman, Stones (Hassell 55), Golbourne (Cranie 55), Dawson, Etuhu, Cywka, Mellis, Harewood, Davies. Unused substitutes: Lidakevicius, Collins, Dagnall, Clark, Rose.

Referee: Roger East (Wiltshire).

Man of the match: Wayne Bridge.