Albion stalwart Kerry Mayo says it is every man for himself as competition for places hots up ahead of the new season.

Albion continued their build up for the Division Two opener at Oldham on August 9 with a 2-0 win at Conference side Barnet.

Mayo did his chances of a starting place no harm with a stunning strike to give Albion the lead on 43 minutes.

Striker Leon Knight, who is on a two-month loan from Chelsea, marked his debut with the second goal from close range on 73 minutes to boost his hopes of winning a permanent contract at the club.

The goalscorers were not the only players attempting to impress manager Steve Coppell.

Young striker Chris McPhee, with five goals in the previous three pre-season friendlies, again looked sharp and dangerous.

Goalkeeper Michel Kuipers staked a claim ahead of new signing Ben Roberts by lasting 90 minutes and showed no reaction to the thigh injury which kept him out for most of last season.

Fringe players Guy Butters, Robbie Pethick and Adam Virgo looked assured in defence, as captain Danny Cullip sat out the game with injury, and first-year professionals Shaun Wilkinson and Daniel Marney added pace and enthusiasm after coming on in the second half.

Mayo believes the players are physically ready but now face a mental battle as the fight for places hots up.

He said: "It's coming to the stage of pre-season when we are looking to get ourselves ready for the start of the season. Physically we are right now but mentally we need to start preparing in the right manner.

"Everyone is up for it, everyone is raring to go. The more we play the more everyone puts into it and everyone is fighting for a place. No one has got a place secure at the moment, so everyone is fighting for themselves.

"You have to maintain a high level of fitness and, of course, ability as well. Hopefully, come the start of the season, you will be in the first XI."

Any pressure on Mayo's place was eased by his superb 25-yard effort which gave Albion the lead just before half time.

Richard Carpenter, on for Charlie Oatway who suffered a slight knock to his ankle, squared the ball and Mayo lashed an unstoppable shot into the top right-hand corner.

Mayo joked: "I score them like that all the time in training. No, honestly, it was a great strike and it's not often they go in the top corner. It's just a shame it was only in a friendly."

Knight was equally pleased with his second-half goal which was just reward for a hard-working performance, before he was replaced by Dan Beck.

Wilkinson headed a free kick from Nathan Jones back across goal and Knight arrived at the back post to prod in unmarked from two yards.

Knight left Chelsea because his first team chances were limited following the arrivals of big name stars funded by new owner Roman Abramovich.

The pint-sized striker was pleased with his debut.

He said: "I thought it went well and it was good to get a goal because it is always a confident-booster if you score, especially for a striker.

"I have been training twice a day every day with Chelsea so my fitness is not a problem at the moment. It's just a few other things I need to touch up which, hopefully, I will be able to do over the next couple of weeks.

"I'm looking forward to the rest of the pre-season friendlies and I can't wait for the season to begin."

One player who is definitely not a threat to the rest of the squad is Peter Ali, who came on for Albion in the closing minutes.

He turned out to be the winner of a competition to be an Albion player for a day.

The 28-year-old, from Reading, was given the prize as a birthday present by his girlfriend, who won it in an auction on a web-site.

He also gets the No. 98 shirt for the whole of next season, will train with the squad for a day and appear in the team photo.

Ali admits he fulfilled a lifelong ambition, despite not being an Albion fan. He said: "I didn't expect to go on. I thought I would just sit there and watch, so when Steve (Coppell) asked me where I play, I thought he was winding me up.

"He told me to get kitted up and said I could only go on as long as I looked like a professional and not a Sunday League player. I thought that will be hard because I am a Sunday League player.

"I didn't a get a touch, although in my mind I probably scored two or three goals."

His moment of glory came at a price, however, as his kit was hidden, shredded and thrown across the dressing room by his new team-mates after the game.

He said: "Some of the boys took a bit of a fancy to my pants and shorts and my kit got dispersed across the changing room.

I'm probably going to be infamous around Brighton for the worst 30 seconds in the history of the club. But it was a dream come true to be this close to a professional football club and I loved every second of it."

Barnet: Naisbitt, Rooney, King, Hendon, Plummer, Maddix, Williams, Gamble, Roache, Strevnes, Pluck. Subs (all used): Mass, Millard, J. Smith, Henry, L. Smith, Cumberbatch, Freeman.

Albion: Kuipers, Watson, Mayo, Rodger, Pethick, Butters, Hart, Knight, McPhee, Oatway, Jones. Subs (all used): Carpenter, Hinshelwood, Pitcher, Marney, Harding, Virgo, Hammond, Beck, Wilkinson, Ali.

Attendance: 721