NEW Brighton boss Martin Hinshelwood has been coaching more than half his life but at Turf Moor tomorrow he will be in charge of a Football League side for the first time in his life.

"I can already feel a bit of a tingle in my fingers," he admitted, as he looked forward to his debut as team manager.

"I am really looking forward to it and I know that feeling will keep growing right until kick-off on Saturday.

"By then I will be tingling all over."

Like Clarets boss Stan Ternent, Hinshelwood was forced to quit playing at a young age because of injury and the 49-year-old has been a coach at all levels for the last 25 years, his first break coming thanks to a former England manager.

"Terry Venables asked me to coach the youth team at Crystal Palace when I stopped playing with a knee injury," he explained.

"To be honest, today I would probably have a quick operation and then be back playing inside a few months.

"But back then that sort of injury ended your career and I have been coaching ever since."

Hinshelwood has been a popular choice among Seagulls' fans to succeed Peter Taylor who quit within a couple of weeks of leading the club to its second successive championship.

He had been Brighton's Academy director but now he is facing the increased daily pressures of being the man in charge.

"One change is that the players all call be gaffer now instead of Hinshy," he laughed.

"And the other big thing is that I have to speak to the press a lot but that comes with the job. Apart from that I have tried to carry on working as normal.

"I have been coaching a long time and I will continue to do the things I have always done. The difference is that now the whole club is my responsibility."

It is ten years since the Seagulls were in the second tier of English football and only four years since they only avoided a drop to the Conference by drawing at Hereford United on the last day of the season and sending them down instead.

"The whole club is looking forward to this season, the fans, myself and the players," he said.

"They showed what they are capable of last season and they want to prove they can do it a higher level.

"This is a magnificent division and we will enjoy going to places like Turf Moor, Molineux, Leicester and Derby.

"The last two years have been remarkable. We have not added to the squad but there is still a chance a couple of new faces will come in."

Plans to bring Guy Butters in from Gillingham fell through this week but Wimbledon's Andy Roberts is one man who could still make the switch to the Withdean Stadium.

The jewel in Brighton's crown is striker Bobby Zamora who has been linked with a host of big clubs and forced his way into the England Under-21 squad with his goalscoring feats in Division Two last season.

"He has got a lot of qualities and he has proved that over the last two seasons," said Hinshelwood. "Like the other players he now wants to prove himself in the first division."

Hinshelwood may be a new manager but he is wise enough to avoid making predictions but he said: "At this time last year everyone was asking if we could stay up."

Staying up is the first target this time around but he has one advantage over his opposite number at Turf Moor.

"We have not been hit by the television money like others," he explained.

"We had not planned on having any big cash injection this year so the fact is we are around £300,000 better off than last year."

With their new stadium yet to be built, the club is still playing at the Withdean Stadium and far from wealthy but they are still travelling in style for their return to the first division.

"The thought of driving up the M1 and M6 in August was not a pleasant one so we are going to fly to Manchester from Gatwick tomorrow morning," he said.

"We have got a game against Coventry on Tuesday night and this means the players will be back home in good time on Saturday night."

Hinshelwood will be hoping that his team can get off to a flying start on the pitch as well.