A deadline has been set for Albion fans wanting to have their say at a public inquiry vital to their club's future.

People wanting to air their views for or against controversial plans for a new, 22,374-capacity ground at Falmer have been told to turn up on the first day of the hearing next month.

Those who have not already registered must be at Hove Town Hall on February 18 at 9.30am. After that, it will be too late to allocate a slot to speak.

Albion was granted planning permission for the £44 million stadium by Brighton and Hove City Council last year but this permission has been frozen pending the hearing.

The authority's costs alone for fighting their case for the ground will cost taxpayers an estimated £250,000.

Battle plans for the hearing will be discussed next week when a report goes before the council's planning committee on Wednesday.

More on the Seagulls at thisisthealbion.co.uk