The all-clear after collision
strike was enough to claim the points for Brighton, who last won away from home in the top flight against Swansea on November 4 last year.
There was an element of fortune about it, as Jose Izquierdo’s shot clipped both defender Paul Dummett and the midfielder on its way past goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, although there was no luck about the way the Seagulls defended as Newcastle sought a way back into the game.
The defeat was all the harder to take for manager Benitez as he saw his team create more than enough chances to take at least a point, but fail to take any of them, with Ayoze Perez guilty of an early miss that may have changed the face the of the game.
Benitez said: “Today’s game, with the chances we created, we could have beaten Brighton. We didn’t.
“We didn’t create enough, and we didn’t create enough clear-cut chances.”
On the other hand, Hughton was delighted with a priceless away win.
He said: “It’s a big victory for us that we have had to earn. We were up against probably more shots than we would be in a normal game, and that’s a side desperate to get a result.
“It’s the type of victory that you have to work really hard to get.” NEWCASTLE united:
Dubravka 6; Yedlin 6, Lascelles 6, Fernandez 7, Dummett 7; Ritchie 7, Shelvey 8, Diame 7, Kenedy 7; Perez 7; Muto 6 (Joselu 74, 6). Unused subs – Darlow (Gk), Schar, Murphy, Hayden, Manquillo, Atsu. brighton & Hove Albion:
Ryan 8; Bruno 7 (Bernardo 68, 7), Duffy 8, Dunk 8, Bong 6; Jahanbakhsh 8, Stephens 7, Kayal 8, Izquierdo 7 (Bissouma 80, 6); March 7; Murray 6 (Locadia 16, 7). Unused subs – Button (Gk), Andone, Knockaert, Balogun.