Danny Hylton showed no sign of his recent illness as an early marauding run stretched the visitors' defence. But Shots faced an uphill challenge when John Halls received a sixth minute red card for an off-the-ball incident.
Two veterans combined when forward Gary Hart came close; latching on to Mauricio Taricco's curled pass to drive his shot a foot high of Kitteridge's bar. Brighton took the lead on 18 minutes. Augustin Battipiedi hitting a pass to Christian Baz who hit a stinging half-volley inside the near post.
Shots had a decent opening shortly after; battling Luke Guttridge won the ball and passed wide to Jamie Vincent. His cross reached Hylton's strong leap, but he flashed his header narrowly wide.
On the half-hour a rough bodycheck from Lewis Dunk on Wade Small destroyed Shots' counter-attack. This drew an angry response from Aldershot players but no card.
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