ALBION’S former chief executive has praised the “extraordinary” heights the club has reached under the current hierarchy.
Martin Perry was the club’s acting director and a prominent figure in negotiations with former chairman Bill Archer.
From 1997, with Dick Knight as chairman and Perry as chief executive Albion went on to secure a return to the city for Albion with the move to Withdean Stadium in 1999.
The club was homeless for two years, playing its games in Gillingham 70 miles away.
The pair oversaw one of Albion’s most successful eras in the early 2000s, while also securing the £120 million state-of-the-art Amex Stadium in Falmer and £32 million training centre in Lancing.
Perry and Knight “laid the foundations” while owner Tony Bloom and chief executive Paul Barber have taken Albion to “extraordinary levels”.
He told The Argus: “The transformation from the club then in 1997 when we were right at the foot of the Football League to where it is now, which is finishing ninth in the Premier League, it is just an astonishing achievement.
“We could never have dreamed of it back then. It is a wonderful story and I am so proud of what they have all achieved and feel so privileged to have been able to play a part in it.
“What we did was to lay the foundations, Tony Bloom and Paul Barber have taken it on to quite extraordinary levels and have done a magnificent job on the foundations we laid.
“We are incredibly fortunate, when you look around and see what has happened to other clubs.
"You look at clubs like Derby who have been in the dire straits, these are huge clubs.
“We are extremely fortunate to have in particular Tony but Paul as well who has been magnificent.
"To have that level of support, passion and commitment on the board and from the owner is quite unbelievable really.”
Martin Perry retired as an executive director in September 2020, marking an end to 24 years with the Seagulls.
He now works as a chairman for the board of trustees for Albion in the Community, which he helped start.
The charity is asking people to consider becoming “community champions” by signing up for a monthly donation of £5 to support the work it does. People who enter get a chance of a signed men’s first team shirt.
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