Easter Monday in contrast to Good Friday was dank, grey wet and dreary and being a little pushed for time to get to the station had to brave the heavy drizzle and get wet in the process. I was on my way not to Reading this time but the other way to Guildford where I was to be picked up by Will who had got leave of absence to attend the game. He was accompanied by little Will and his mate Joel. My isolation was over! I arrived at Guildford at about 10.45 and met up with Will as arranged. We were soon on our way north and I was hoping because of the holiday break, the M25 would not be its usual car park impression. How wrong you can be. In heavy rain, with poor visibility we lost a good three-quarters of an hour but once we’d cleared the M40 turn off we were able to make up some time and called in at Baginton to pick up little Jack who was back from France taking in a couple of beers before departing for St Andrew’s. Fortified by a steak and ale pie and another pint at the ground it was up to our seats for the game.
The weather had cheered up a bit but though the sun was now shining, the stiff breezy wind promised to make playing conditions tricky. This was to prove to be the case. A largely unchanged team with Juninho Bacuna coming in for Alfie Chang took the field. I’m afraid this match will have to join the pile of those best forgotten since it was pretty terrible. Both sides contributed to a poor quality encounter in which moments of excitement were rare. It was an attritional game which had 0-0 written all over it from the first few minutes. The only time either side threatened was when John Ruddy made an excellent save from a shot from Tyrese Campbell heading towards his top right hand corner 15 minutes before the break. For Blues, Chong inadvertently got in Hall’s way when the latter burst into the box in time added on in the first half.
The second half was no improvement. Stoke were slightly the better in that they enjoyed most of the possession and were more accurate in passing compared to Blues who were very poor in that regard. There was minimal quality in this match and it limped on to its ultimate conclusion of an end of the season, nothing to play for, sterile, goalless draw. Blues did carve out the best chance of the second half right at the end when Hogan crossed for Jobe Bellingham whose side footed effort was blocked as a last ditch for a corner. It would have been a smash and grab and wholly undeserved so in a way 0-0 was all this sorry contest was worth. At least it took us to the half century of points and a virtual guarantee of Championship football next season. There was more rain to greet us on the way out of the ground and a rainbow bespangled the ground as we looked back on the way to the car.
The Good: The fact that we didn’t lose this game. In fairness, both teams did well to get nil.
The Bad: Difficult to know where to start.
The Ugly: A horrible game of football.
Birmingham City: John Ruddy 7, Maxime Colin 5, Marc Roberts 6, Kevin Long 6, Auston Trusty 6, Tahith Chong 5 (Jobe Bellingham 84, N/A) Krystian Bielik 6, Juniho Bacuna 4, (Jordan James 93, N/A) Reda Khadra 7 (Scott Hogan 84, N/A) Lukas Jutkiewicz 6, George Hall 5
Subs not used: Neil Etheridge, Harlee Dean, Hannibal Mjebri, Jordan James, Alfie Chang.
Goals: None
Yellow cards: Roberts 26, Bielik 61.
Stoke City: Jack Bonham 6, Ben Wilmot 6, Dujon Sterling 6, Ki-Jana Hoever 6, Morgan Fox 7, Ben Pearson 6, Josh Laurent 7, William Smallbone 6, Dwight Gayle 6 (Nick Powell 66, 6) Jacob Brown 5, Tyrese Campbell 6 (Josh Tymon 79, 6)
Subs not used: Bersant Cellina, Connor Taylor, Frank Fielding, Jordan Thompson, Lewis Baker.
Goals: None
Yellow cards: Wilmot 56, Pearson 73.
Referee: Darren Bond 6: The officials could only judge the fare before them and there were too many disruptive petty fouls combined with the poor passing to establish any flow and rhythm to this game. One of the linesmen couldn’t tell the difference between a goal kick and a corner at one stage but no ill came of it.
Attendance: 17,413
KRO Bazza
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