Last year’s under-23 skipper made the season-long switch to the League One side for the remainder of the 2019/20 campaign just 13 years after plying his trade with the Dons as youngster.
He said, “That connection is a funny one in a way, I was just playing locally as a youngster in Horsham at the time and my Dad knew quite a few people at the club because he worked in the area.
“He knew some of the coaches of the younger age groups and realised I could probably play at that standard – I was here for a couple of years when I was six and seven, played a few seasons and then joined Brighton when I was eight.
“I moved straight from Wimbledon to Brighton, it’s funny how football works sometimes, I’m sure a few of the people from back then are still at the club, but I wouldn’t imagine many are.”
The midfielder entered the action for Wally Downes’s side against MK Dons ten days ago in front of the national tv cameras - his first minutes for the club. Despite being on the wrong end of a 2-1 scoreline, Sanders emphasised it was an experience he relished.
“My debut was big for me, it was a derby game in front of the Sky Sports cameras,” he continued.
“To be honest I wasn’t really expecting to be in the squad because I’d only been training with the group a few days beforehand during the week.
“I travelled on the Friday and the manager told me I was going to be on the bench, then he introduced me at half-time because we were 2-0 down and it felt great to get my senior debut.
“There were a lot of messages from everyone after that match, all of my friends and family were watching on the TV!”
The Dons travel to face league leaders Coventry City tonight following the weekend’s 1-1 draw against Shrewsbury Town at Kingsmeadow.
Sanders spoke about his aims for the remainder of the campaign, as well as the difference he’s found between the Seagulls and the south Londoners to date, and the demographic of the changing room he’s come into.
“I want to play as much as possible at this stage of my career and to help the team progress up the league.
“It’s a different environment to the one I’ve been used to for the last 12 years, and it was probably the right time for me to get out on loan and play as much senior football as I can. I think I probably needed that variety.
“It’s a young squad and I’m one of a number of lads who have come in on loan, so it’s made it easy to settle. The average age is about 23 or 24, the lads here are really good and it’s nice to be a part of.
“The manager isn’t afraid to play youngsters and coming here I know I’ll have a good chance of playing the matches.
“There are obvious differences between the two sets of surroundings. I want to try and make the first team at Brighton, so for me it’s about getting as many minutes as I can during my time here and then seeing what happens from there.”