A 3-0 home defeat in the first round of the Emirates FA Cup to League One Blackpool was no doubt a draining experience for former Albion man and now Eastbourne Borough player Dean Cox.
The winger's work for the afternoon though only really begun when he got home and walked through the front door.
The 33-year-old and his wife Louisa have three children, a biological daughter who is two-and-a-half, and two foster children.
For those who have known Dean from early on his career, finding out that he is now a foster parent comes as a bit of a shock.
“Whenever I tell people I used to play with that me and my wife have two foster children they always say 'I could never imagine you doing that!' But you just have to go for it. We've loved it and it’s become normal life for us.
“Having kids was the last thing on my mind when I was a lot younger, but meeting my now wife and seeing the difference her mum, who has fostered for 15 years, made to the lives of the children that she has fostered showed us how rewarding it is. We wanted to make a difference. She was the inspiration really.
“When I wasn't fostering I had a lot of admiration for people who did. Now my family is one of those families and it’s become normal. You treat them as your own children, I call them my children.
“My mother-in-law had always mentioned that we should do it and we decided to take the plunge. You have to go through a nine-month process where they go through your life with a fine tooth comb for understandable reasons.
“But we've had the two children for two years now who will be with us until they're 18. We've got our own daughter as well so it's a busy house.
“When they first moved in it was difficult because they were in new surroundings, new bedrooms and having to get used to the rules of the house.
“We have got charts up for chores and timeslots for homework to give them such structure. They know the way it works now like the back of their hand.
“It sounds regimental but foster children need that element of structure. We love and care for them like they're our own and we have a lot of fun.
“You do learn on the job. I have just done a therapeutic course to try and help them deal with situations they might encounter. It has certainly opened my eyes to what can happen in a child's life and really brought home how lucky I was in terms of my upbringing.
“They call us mum and dad and have done from fairly early on. There was never any pressure on them to do so, it was completely up to them. We let them express themselves as they want but it's as nice for us when you know they feel safe and secure.”
An Albion academy graduate, Cox played 179 times for the club before joining Leyton Orient in 2010. He then had a spell at Crawley Town but is now in his third season with Eastbourne, who entered the Emirates FA Cup in the second qualifying round and beat Dorking Wanderers on penalties.
They saw off Sheppey United and Dulwich Hamlet to earn a first round draw with the Tangerines live on TV, but on the day Blackpool had too much for them.
“Blackpool could have scored after 30 seconds, but our goalkeeper made a great save,” Cox said. “We had one big chance but we didn't take advantage and with hindsight it might have been a different game had we put that away.
“But on the day [striker] Gary Madine was unplayable. He was strong, held up the ball, got his shots off. If Graham Potter needs a scout report then I will be willing to send him one!
“Everything goes through Madine, they look to use him a lot. They have got some lively wingers too so it will be a tough game for Brighton.”