Brighton and Hove Albion star Shane Duffy is "quietly confident" the Seagulls can achieve promotion to the Premier League this season.

The south coast club face strugglers Blackburn Rovers, Birmingham City, Wigan and Bristol City in their last eight matches of the season, and the Irishman is optimistic that Brighton can do enough in those games to seal promotion to the top flight.

But - although the games may look easy - the injured defender knows anything can happen at the business end of the Championship season.

He told the Argus: “Nothing changes too much. It’s an exciting time now. These are the vital games, ones you want to be involved in.

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“The lads are up for it. We are quietly confident we can do it.

“It’s always all right on paper but they are never like that in this league. You can never take any game lightly and in a way they are probably tougher games than the top four or five because you naturally get yourself up for those games, being in the limelight playing against Newcastle, Reading and Huddersfield.

“But these are worth the same three points against a Blackburn or a Birmingham. That’s the way we’ve got to think.”

Albion are a point off league leaders Newcastle and are six ahead of Town - who have a game in hand.

And Duffy knows the Terriers will continue to push Brighton to the final game of the season.

“It’s exciting for the league,” he said. “You thrive off it, the lads are anyway. You can’t let go. If you lose you know Huddersfield are going to be behind you.

“That’s why the league is so good and entertaining. For our sake it’s one game at a time.”