Sometimes, Goliath Wins: Imps 1-3 Birmingham City

October 20, 2024 Gary Birmingham City, League One, Lincoln City, Matches, Reports 3

Still, half-time came and we went in at 1-1. I genuinely felt that we could get something from the game and that if we just kept doing what we could in the second period, a point would be a huge achievement. However, Birmingham had other ideas, and as we had in the first half, they came out fighting. Alfie May mustered up a shot, and before we’d seen ten minutes, Willumsson had scored.

The goal wound me up because the huge Icelandic international was the player I’d picked out as one to watch to people before the game. He was, of course, excellent, and his finish for their second was absolute class. The goal looked very similar to their opener, but perhaps not quite as weak from our point of view. It was the finish of an international footballer, of a player who appeared 31 times (with seven goals) for a team who qualified for Europe last season (Go Ahead Eagles, Eredivisie). Sometimes, you just have to hold up your hands and admit we’ve been done, fair and square. It was also nice for their supporters, as it meant they could finally start singing, which they did, pretty much solid until the end of the game.

Birmingham should have been down to ten men as well. Klarer (who I saw play for Fortuna Düsseldorf a couple of years ago, another marker of the difference between the sides) was done by Jeffries on the left flank, and the Austrian hauled our man down. Bear in mind, he should have been on a yellow, and perhaps had he been, he doesn’t make the challenge. The ref pulled the yellow, and the free kick produced nothing.

I’ll give them their due – they’ve settled into the dark arts of League One quite quickly. They’ve good with the ball, but they’re smart without it. They’ve got great shape, they choke you in possession and, when they need to, they’ll commit a foul. I’ve heard it about us, but we got no bookings yesterday, they got three and it could have been more. There was a feeling that perhaps you beat Birmingham by kicking them a bit and letting them know you’re there, but that’s not the case. In fact, I don’t know how you beat them, but it isn’t being frightened and waiting for them to attack you.

We didn’t curl up in that ball after their goal, we kept fighting, and that’s brave. We had changed formation for the game, we’d set up to try and take something, and that deserves respect. When we went 2-1 down, we made changes to get back into the game, and that’s very unlike us, particularly over the last few seasons. Michael Appleton was in the stands, and rain or shine, his changes and approach stayed the same – Birmingham or Bromley, Forest Green or Nottingham Forest, we’d do the same thing. Mark Kennedy wasn’t in the stands, but the same went for him – go 1-0 down and he’d take that and batten down the hatches. Michael Skubala tried to win the game, and, but for the narrowest of margins, it might have paid off.

Erik Ring came on and was instantly involved, forcing Ryan Allsop into a save after stripping their defence bare. While they still had possession, it felt like we were still there, still swinging, still looking for a hit. Then, on 72 minutes, we got our break. McGrandles got a touch in the box, and the Paik got a touch on McGrandles. The referee took a bit of time, but made the right decision. We then handed the ball to Reeco, which many felt was the wrong decision.

That’s not slur on him, but for a player who had literally only just come on to take a penalty, it requires a huge amount of fortitude. Then there was the noise from behind the goal, 1,800 Blues sparked into life, and the Allsop factor. Ryan Allsop, their keeper, played for us, I’m sure you’ll remember. He made his debut for us in the EFL Trophy semi-final against Chelsea where he saved a Jacob Maddox penalty to send us to Wembley. So, we have a player taking his first touch, against a keeper who saves penalties at Sincil Bank. Before he hit it, I told Dad I felt we’d miss. That wasn’t pessimism; it was calculated.

We missed, and not long after they put the game to bed with a third. To see the game out, they brought on Ethan Laird (50+ Championship appearances over the last two seasons) and Lyndon Dykes, who played the full 90 minutes of Scotland’s Euro 2020 game against England in 2021, and was selected for their Euro 2024 squad, but withdrew from injury. Levels.

Walking back from the ground I felt genuinely gutted. All the stuff beforehand had made it an odd afternoon, but the fact we’d had a go and had perhaps blown our chance really hurt. I’d have been more content if they’d blown us away 5-0, comprehensively hammered, and yet I know that would have been worse. Yesterday’s outcome was the best we could have hoped for without getting a point. We gave it a go, we had a plan and we could have taken something. If the penalty had gone in, who knows? If Klarer’s first foul had been seen, who knows? If Erik Ring’s chance and been a little harder and Allsop had parried it, who knows?

Look, I was proud of our players. Some put in an outstanding shift, such as Roughan, Hamer and O’Connor. The forwards worked hard, the wing back tirelessly, and despite being outclassed in midfield, we never gave up. The two returning players, Reeco and Ethan Hamilton, looked rusty, but that’s to be expected, both were getting their first serious league minutes since last season. It’s catch-22 isn’t it – they’re perhaps in need of minutes, but can only get them by coming on a running off the rust. Still, I was proud of our efforts, but find a fighting dispaly like that hard to take when maybe, if the penalty goes in, we take a point. Maybe.

I have more perspective this morning. You get three points for beating Birmingham, just like you do Crawley or Orient, and it’s only our second league defeat of the season. Now it’s a time to show character and application, by going down to Crawley on Tuesday and getting a win. If that happens, we’re back on track – take three points from every two matches, and you’d have 69 points, which is just about play-off form. Lose one, you have to go and win the next, and then the previous defeat doesn’t matter.

Yesterday, for me, wasn’t about the points. it was about change. Not the changes off the field that had me feeling jaded, but those on the field. It was a different Lincoln City approach to the game, one that did see us go long, but for a reason. If we go long, and they win the ball, then it is high for us to win back, which is what we tried to do. If we play out from the back, the risk is immediately losing the ball in our own third, and that’s a huge issue. We weren’t just trying to hit a big man, we were trying to shift the game into the third we wanted it played, and I understood that perfectly. That was our way of winning the game, and while it didn’t work, it was better that waiting for the punches to stop. I’d rather we went out and gave it a go and lost than just waiting to see how things fall by shutting up shop.

Today, I shall mostly be chilling out, trying to put the game and the day behind me, until I have to talk about it on the podcast later. However, the more time elapses between that walk down Sincil Bank and now, the better, because reality is we did ourselves porud yesterday, and perhaps, for one slightly better stroke of the ball, could have had a point.

Up the Imps

2 Comments

  1. Good report. Blues were a class act but like you gutted that we’ve missed a penalty again in another big match. Unfortunate that House and Milan had been subbed but Reece still a strange choice.

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