The Blues Fans Podcast and Live Show
It raised a few eyebrows when Lee Bowyer placed his most experienced defender and club captain Harley Dean, on the Transfer list. I questioned the timing when we then took a gubbing at Blackburn. Inevitably we lost Roberts and Graham through injury and then surprisingly Dion Sanderson got recalled to Wolves. After a Covid break saved us from further punishment over Christmas we found ourselves taking on a useful QPR side with two 17-year-olds starting and a 16 and 18-year-old on the bench.
we had a foot of snow for 13 days. No football, no racing so this sports fanatic never went past the front door. I probably went on a five-day, daylight sleep cycle so could watch the Ashes. The irony of that, I am sure won’t be lost after this year’s England’s debacle.
What are we heading for in 2022? Firstly, scenes like the above i.e., minimal numbers allowed in as Scotland have already decided or zero attendance as in Wales. I am glad that the Fulham match is off for several reasons. Fulham is usually one of our best supported away trips but reductions in their ground capacity have reduced our allocation dramatically. My son and I, he lives in London, were trying all sorts of avenues to get to see the game without much luck. Just when Fulham advertised tickets for sale, then the game was called off. The old cynic in me suggests they were aware of the possible postponements and were trying to get a few extra sales. They know that they will not get so many punters in on a cold midweek in February.
The above two players are not Birmingham City players and yet their immediate future will decide the fate of this club over the next six months. On Saturday we face Blackburn Rovers in our 23rd game of the season. Halfway and our current points per game would see us at around 53 points come the end off the season. Probably safe from the drop but with no sight of the play-offs, without either of the two above we could fall well below that total.
Finding myself on the train to Liverpool Lime Street around 1.00 pm last Saturday when I should have been arriving at New Street was a bit disconcerting. The Train manager kindly soothed my worried brow by letting me off at Stafford. 20 minutes later I alighted in Brum and only had a 25-minute walk to the ground.
No doubt what is on the lips of every member of the Bluenose Nation this week. “Where do they find these Referees? “The answer is from players who have had their playing careers cut short, like myself, and the blokes who will never get a game as long as they live. (My apologies to Women’s players and officials. I know little of the women’s game and my remarks may well not apply to them.)
In an international week there is often little to discuss. So, if you disregard our injury problems and the greatest goal ever disallowed so ludicrously in international football, we are not left with much.
What a weekend we had last week. My normal 200-mile trip to St Andrews was interrupted by a tweet from the club. It said “Would all Blues fans please cease their journey as we cannot guarantee the match will commence” I was 150 yards from the ground on the 97 bus !
Well, what a difference a week makes? Since my last literary contribution 6 points ,5 goals, 2 clean sheets and an upsurge in position in an ever-contracting table. Only 3 points outside the playoffs, although we would need at least a 3-goal win to get in there.
When Troy Deeney arrived, I said I was reservedly excited. Troy’s start, by his own admission was not as explosive as we, or he would have hoped. My reservations were sadly starting to become more like fears. Too many interviews perhaps, too much talk and not enough action.