Will and I decided over the weekend that we would perhaps be able to make it to this game as work commitments for both of us seemed to be lining up; the moon was in the Seventh House and Jupiter aligned with Mars. I got away from Guildford at just after five and managed to catch the 17.34 from Guildford up to town. Everything was spookily going according to plan so perhaps it was written in the stars after all. That was of course until my train was delayed by signalling problems and so I didn’t arrive at Waterloo until about 18.20 where a curmudgeonly Will was waiting and complaining that all the pub facilities at Waterloo had been turned into trendy wine bars and you couldn’t get a decent pint unless it was bloody Merlot! We had to move off now anyway and so we made our way to London Bridge and from there to South Bermondsey station where visiting supporters to Millwall are now shepherded into an area that resembles a concentration camp around the North Stand. I had arranged to pick our tickets up from there but when we arrived at the kiosk we were told the staff were awaiting the coaches from Birmingham bringing them. We were scuppered well and truly; we weren’t allowed in and couldn’t venture out so we waited until ten minutes before kick off when the coaches finally turned up with a list of names but only one, yes one, ticket and that wasn’t mine or Will’s. Off the ticket office girl went with the list of names to get tickets printed in the main office. We eventually got in just in time for kick off having not had any food or more importantly a pint! It was a dank, miserable, dark October night and our melancholy was complete after only 18 minutes of the game.
Blues playing in our new pink third kit, specifically scheduled to make its debut for this game (well you can’t say the backroom boys at our club don’t have a sense of humour; Millwall of all places!) Having chosen a girly colour to play in I didn’t expect that our defenders were going to perform like an under 9 netball team. The team started brightly enough in the first ten minutes and then conceded a routine throw in on our left flank. A long throw by Liam Feeney was flicked on by Darius Henderson and the Chris Wood got in in front of his defender to head under Butland from about four yards; absolutely shocking, as shocking as the colour of our shirts. Losing the first header in our box is bad enough but to lose the second ball as well is downright criminal. Worse was to come two minutes later when a routine cross from their right again ricocheted off Paul Robinson, in at right back, into the path of Chris Taylor in splendid isolation at the far post who gleefully thumped the ball into the roof of the net from three yards. The defending was once again totally shambolic with no taking responsibility to attack the ball and clear properly. None of the intrepid travellers there could believe what they were seeing as things got even worse as the score became 3-0 in the space of only seven minutes. Another routine cross from the same area as the previous two took a deflection and looped up in the air. Curtis Davies, who looked injured from the outset to me, attempted to head it but only succeeded in crashing into Steven Cauldwell and into an ungainly heap they fell leaving Chris Wood, he of Bruges fame, to toe end the ball over Butland into the top corner. Eighteen minutes and the game was over; it was 6-0 last season and this looked like a repeat only in the opposite direction. Another goal to Millwall and it was an early train for us Will and I agreed.
It could have happened too as Chris Wood miscued a volley to complete his hat trick and late in the half produced a fine save from Butland from another half volley that would have spelt the end for sure for the boys in pink. What were our beloved team doing in the meantime whilst all this mayhem was going on? They did try and play football to be fair in contrast to the direct whack it up to Woods or down the channels style of the home team; not pretty but hellishly effective when the team you’re playing don’t defend properly. The problem with Blues approach play was that they kept giving the ball away and this seemed to happen every time Hayden Mullins got it; he was hopeless frankly and constantly undid much of the better work that the wide midfielders, David Murphy and Ravel Morrison produced; I only noted one pass all half that went from Mullins to a team mate and that was to a man with at least three home players around him who in turn was dispossessed by the muscular Millwall defenders. To show how bad his performance was there was an incident near the end of the half when he put in a reckless tackle and our supporters joined the home support in chants of “Off, Off, Off, Off!” and there were groans when the referee only produced a yellow card! It was probably the right decision but it could easily have been a red and there would have been little complaint from the Blues faithful had he been given his marching orders. Surely, he would be substituted in the second half? It would have had the effect of making it an eleven a side game rather than 12 v 10!
Will turned to me about two minutes from the break and said, “I’m going for a pint, do you want one?” “Yeah, go on ahead and I’ll join you.” I replied. Will disappeared under the stand and after another minute or so I started to follow as two minutes added on was announced. I got down to the stand exit and just before I turned away, Leroy Lita turned the bulky frame of Danny Shittu and fired in a cross shot with his left foot wide of David Forde in the Millwall goal. It was going wide but Marlon King who had been on the end of relentless stick from the home crowd all evening was on hand at the far post to tap home at the far post for a consolation goal. I turned to the Steward standing next to me and said, “Bloody hell, hope springs eternal!” The Steward laughed and I disappeared down the steps in search of Will who was by now at the front of the queue and ordering our beers. The fact that we had just scored did not lift the gloom that much and the talk was of damage limitation and getting out of here with some dignity still intact.
As the second period started Henderson lashed a fierce 25 yard drive that was on target only for Butland to make a top class save and send the ball wide to safety. This to my mind was the turning point of the game as Blues scored again with only four minutes of the restart gone. A flowing, elegant move involving Wade Elliott and David Murphy resulted in the latter getting behind the Millwall rearguard and crossing to King who controlled beautifully before swivelling and burying the ball into the bottom corner from eight yards. Suddenly it was game on and the Blues faithful found their voices. The shambolic, hopeless, low tempo rubbish of the first period was gone. Millwall looked rattled and Birmingham were all swagger, poise, pace and movement that I for one have not seen so far this season. The period up to about 80 minutes was the best I have seen from us all season with crisp passing, first to every breakdown and totally dominant and on the front foot. I don’t know where this second half performance came from but let’s have more of it boys! Just after the hour, Millwall were ripped apart by Wade Elliott and Ravel Morrison again and the on loan youngster delivered a beautifully timed pass into Murphy whose cross from the by-line was superbly side-footed past the helpless Forde by King completing his hat trick for 3-3. Blues with a little more fortune with the run of the ball could and perhaps should have gone on and won this game but sadly ran out of steam towards the end as Millwall found recovered their composure and went for the winner themselves in the last ten minutes which made for a nervy finish. In the end the result was about right and we have to be grateful that a point was salvaged out of a calamitous first half.
I know it is an old cliché but this really was a game of two halves. As bad as we were, particularly defensively in the first forty-five minutes, we were excellent in the second. It is such a pity that we can go to a tough place and score three cracking goals and not win because we gave them three gifts. We simply cannot afford to defend like we did in that seven minute spell and expect to get anything out of games. We have a lot of injuries that is true but professional players should be able to do the basics of tackling, tracking men and keeping a solid shape properly and not get themselves in such a mess. On the positive side, it was a fantastic come back and showed spirit and fight when many tell me that the players don’t want to play for Lee Clark. I do not subscribe to that view and there was little evidence for that belief in the second half. In the end this point felt like a win but we will have to be a lot better against Leeds on Saturday.
The Good: The pride, spirit and commitment to come back from a disastrous start. Excellent treble from Marlon King. The second half performance generally.
The Bad: Having to hang around on a miserable night for our tickets and then find they still had to be printed. The first half performance generally, Hayden Mullins particularly.
The Ugly: The defending for all of Millwall’s goals; absolutely dreadful!
Millwall: David Forde 6, Alan Dunne 6, Danny Shittu (C) 7, Liam Trotter 6, Darius Henderson 7, Liam Feeney 6 (Andy Keogh 66, 6), Mark Beevers 7, Chris Taylor 7, Jack Smith 7 (Shane Lowry 46, 6), Jimmy Abdou 6, Chris Wood 8.
Subs (in numerical order): Maik Taylor, Josh Wright, Karleigh Osborne, Scott Malone, Dany N’Guessan.
Goals: Wood (11, 19), Taylor (13)
Bookings: Lowry (79)
Birmingham City: Jack Butland 7, Paul Robinson 5, Steven Caldwell (C) 6, Curtis Davies 6, David Murphy 7, Wade Elliott 8, Ravel Morrison 8, Hayden Mullins 3, Nathan Redmond 6 (Chris Burke 87, N/A), Leroy Lita 7, Marlon King 9.
Subs not used: Colin Doyle, Mitch Hancox, Will Packwood, Papa Bouba Diop, Darren Ambrose, Keith Fahey.
Goals: King (45+1, 49, 63)
Bookings: Mullins (41), Elliott (81)
Referee: Mark Haywood 7: I thought the referee was fair and consistent and contributed to what turned out to be an entertaining game.
Attendance: 9, 258 (510 Blues fans)
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