Albion boss Steve Coppell believes Paul Kitson still has a "big role" to play in the battle to beat the drop.

The injury-plagued front man has not featured in the starting line-up since September but Coppell has not given up hope of him making an impact in the Seagulls' remaining six matches.

"We do still have the Kitson conundrum," he said.

"I've just had this feeling all along that he has still got something to add to this season and I still feel that. He's looking that bit sharper every day.

"Before his last injury we were at the stage where I thought he was at his fittest and looking most up for the challenge.

"Now he is as sceptical about himself as we have become. He is on a knife-edge all the time. One injury and that's his season done, but speaking to him I know he wants to make the contribution.

"He wants to and we are supportive so fingers crossed, because I've just got this feeling he has still got a big role to play."

Kitson continues his comeback in the Reserves against Reading at Worthing tonight (7pm).

He came through a 90-minute run-out in the seconds at Oxford last week and has been training ever since but Coppell is concerned about the poor state of the playing surface at over-used Woodside Road.

"We know what the pitch at Worthing is going to be like and it's just not helping," he said. "It's not helping the development of young players or players rehabilitating from injuries.

"That is no disrespect to the Worthing people, because they try their socks off to get the pitch as good as they can, but the fact is there are too many games played on it. Long term a club at the level we're at has got to have better."

If Kitson emerges unscathed then he could be on the bench for the first team at Reading on Friday night.

Albion face matches after that against Preston, Leicester, Sheffield Wednesday, Watford and Grimsby, which Coppell regards as a challenging run-in.

"I've always said in March you can get some cheap results, because of teams giving up. I heard a quote from the Gillingham manager Andy Hessenthaler at the weekend saying they are out of the play-off picture and can now look forward to next season.

"Are they a team you now want to play against after that message? Ironically their next game is Stoke.

"If you said to me which six teams would you want to play between now and the end of the season they would be six different teams from the ones we are playing, that's for sure.

"We have got to earn survival. It's not going to be dumped in our lap, but we have earned putting ourselves in this position, so I have got no doubt the team is up for it."

Albion Reserves: Packham; Rogers, Hinshelwood, Virgo, Jones, Marney, Hammond, Wilkinson, Harding, Kitson, McPhee, Lee, Beck, Bridle, El-Abd.