NEWCASTLE travel to promotion rivals Brighton next Tuesday for a game that could define their season - and it has been revealed that one of the key players in the Seagulls team could have been playing in black-and-white had things turned out differently in 2011.

Brighton winger Solly March had a trial at Newcastle’s training ground six years ago, and was poised to sign youth terms with the Magpies from non-league Lewes before the loss of a close friend resulted in him returning to the south coast.

He signed for Brighton a few months later, and has established himself as a key member of Chris Hughton’s first team since returning to the senior ranks at the end of last year.

March has been involved in 13 of Brighton's last 15 matches after recovering from knee ligament damage, and had been named in Gareth Southgate's England Under-21 squad prior to his injury setback.

"Solly was going to sign for Newcastle," March’s representative, Robert Codner, told The Northern Echo's sister paper, the Brighton Argus. "He went up there, but he had a tragedy, something happened to his best friend.

"He took it quite badly, so Newcastle sent him back. That was the window for Brighton to become involved. Millwall were involved as well, but Brighton jumped in and got the deal done."