Brighton striker Bobby Zamora denied he is on his way out of the Withdean Stadium after Albion's torturous Division One season finally ended in relegation.

Zamora struck from the penalty spot - his 14th goal of the season - during a 2-2 draw with Grimsby, but the result was academic as Stoke ensured their survival at the expense of the Seagulls by beating Reading.

The south-coast club have rarely looked like escaping relegation since taking just four points from their first 14 league games, a run which cost previous manager Martin Hinshelwood his job, and Brighton's inevitable drop back into the Second Division was confirmed after an enthralling clash at Blundell Park.

Zamora's prolific contribution over the past two seasons led Brighton almost single-handedly to back-to-back championships, although the 22-year-old has been hampered by a series of injury problems this term.

However, the young forward was repeatedly linked with multi-million pound moves to the Premiership last summer, and while Albion have succeeded in keeping hold of Zamora for the last 12 months, there would seem to be a good chance that the talented striker will soon be leaving the Withdean Stadium.

Zamora, though, refused to be drawn on his future, and, asked if the draw at Blundell Park was his last game for Brighton, he insisted: "Not so far as I'm concerned.

"You'll have to ask the chairman. If he gets an offer that he can't resist then that's that. If the club wants to keep me here then that's that. I don't really have much say, do I?

"I've got a contract, and that's football."

Albion's supporters will also be anxiously waiting to discover whether current manager Steve Coppell will be in charge next season after he failed to appear at the post-match press conference.

Coppell had watched his side fight back from Michael Keane's early penalty to take a 2-1 lead through Zamora's penalty and Danny Cullip's close-range finish.

But news of Stoke's winning goal against the Royals had filtered through shortly before Richard Hughes earned a point for the hosts.

Zamora added: "It's been an extraordinary effort but we are still disappointed to drop out of the First Division.

"The whole club is special and the fans were unbelievable again. There's not much we can do now - just go home, have a rest and come back fighting next year."

Relegation had already been confirmed for Grimsby, who looked the better side for long periods and almost snatched victory when Chris Thompson hit the crossbar late on.

Player-manager Paul Groves admitted he felt for Brighton, who will join the Mariners and Sheffield Wednesday in Division Two, but the Grimsby boss also insisted Coppell had done an "excellent job" since taking charge.

"They'd given themselves a chance on the final day of the season, and Steve Coppell has done an excellent job there in difficult circumstances," said Groves.

"He's had a short time to turn things around. Credit to him and his players."

Groves was also delighted with the attitude of his own players, saying: "They've kept going to the end of the season and they showed their professionalism today.

"We wanted to finish on a high and give the fans something to go away with.

"We've now got some hard work ahead of us in the summer to secure a squad which will be good enough to compete in the Second Division."