Sponsored by
Flash cars show difference in two clubs... and sending-off doesn't help: MATCH REPORT AND SLIDESHOW
BIRMINGHAM CITY 3 v OWLS 1: YOU only had to look at the flash motors in the home players' car park beforehand to have the message drummed home that Wednesday were up against wealth and power at St Andrew's.
Not that we didn't know already.
The Owls went into Saturday's game as rank outsiders against a club who were in the Premier League last season and who lead the Championship with a bulging squad of high quality, costly players.
A full-strength Wednesday team can give anybody a game, but, amid another five changes to follow the five made at Barnsley, it was too much to ask the Owls to upset the best start in Blues' history.
Birmingham were just too good, and in all the circumstances - 3-1 down at half time, then a sending-off in the second half - it could be argued that Brian Laws' men got away with a fairly respectable, though unwelcome, scoreline.
The Owls did well to avoid conceding a goal in the second half, though it must be a admitted that Birmingham might have gone up a gear if their comfortable lead had ever looked in danger.
There was something inevitable about the whole afternoon. Wednesday did not meekly accept defeat but they were powerless to prevent it, for all their endeavour.
Once again they fell behind early away home - a bad habit that they do not seem able to cure. Garry O'Connor's header from a free-kick was a cracker as the Scotland international striker outjumped Tommy Spurr and found the far corner.
From Wednesday's point of view, the equaliser from Etienne Esajas three minutes later was by a long way the highlight of the match.
The Dutchman packs a punch in that left foot and vindicated his retutn to the side with a shot that rocketed past Maik Taylor from 25 yards after a short free-kick had been played to him.
If the Owls had managed to stay level for a significant length of time, there might have been just a chance that they could build from there and make Birmingham falter, rather like they upset Charlton at The Valley.
But it was a decisive influence on the game when Blues went straight back in front.
Wednesday were disaorganised at a throw-in, leaving O'Connor to get a free touch just outside the box.
A clever return ball by Kevin Phillips did further damage, and Wednesday had a bit of bad luck when from O'Connor's first shot the ball bounced bounced straight back to him off Richard Wood. The final finish was clinical, however.
Phillips should have scored when he got away from Wood for a duel with Grant that was won by the keeper; the striker also outpaced Spurr and put a good chance wide.
But the mood of inevitability returned when it became 3-1 with a sublime ball by Franck Queudrue sending Phillips racing away from Wood to tuck a perfect shot inside the far post.
It could have got interesting if Jermaine Johnson had scored with close-range header that went straight at the keeper in the 43rd minute after good work from Esajas, Sean McAllister and Leon Clarke.
With Johnson staying off at half-time because of a knock, it was sub Wade Small who made a chance that brought another momentary glimmer of hope. Clarke lobbed the ball past the stranded keeper but with too little height or pace to find the net before a defender intervened near the line.
Clarke held the ball at times and worked hard. His selection as the frontman came about because Laws wanted to field the familiar 4-5-1 away formation in an attempt to keep it tight.
Deon Burton, who perhaps is the striker best suited to playing on his own up front, was not considered fit enough to play from the start, and clearly Laws felt that the demands of front-running alone would be better met by Clarke than Francis Jeffers, who was on the bench.
The Owls manager had hinted that Akpo Sodje would be on the bench. But, once again, with his general fitness in mind, and with Burton and Jeffers among the subs, it was decided to take not the slightest risk with and to save him perhaps for this week.
It is a measure of Steve Watson's current importance to midfield that he was used in this area instead of being switched to centre-half.
His fellow midfielder, Jimmy Smith, was the unfortunate recipient of the Owls' third red card in a week. Laws felt it was a bit harsh, and a look at replays appeared to support that view to a certain degree.
The incident arguably looked worse at normal speed - which is, of course, the only view that the ref gets.
The slowed-down version shows Smith run towards Stuart Parnaby and jump in front of him for a high ball, twisting in mid air so his back faced the Birmingam right-back and his right arm whirled upwards and back, perhaps because of his momentum.
It suggests that Smith's back may have made contact with the front of Parnaby's body but it does not show conclusively that Smith's arm made any contact with the defender's face, whether accidental or intentional, though Parnaby reacted as if it had, raising his hands to his face before he hit the deck.
Just before this incident, Smith had been caught by a late tackle by Parnaby which the referee deemed fair or did not see; it is open to debate whether this had any influence on the red-card clash.
Smith did not play the ball when he jumped against Parnaby but Laws believes it was merely a mistimed challenge, not a malicious one. Perhaps the ref interpreted it as reckless, whether or not contact was made.
It had been hard enough for Wednesday with 11 men; down to 10 and trailing 3-1, the best they could hope for was to keep the score respectable, playing 4-4-1 and trying to get forward when possible.
With Mark Beevers sidelined, Laws put Frankie Simek on the bench because the squad was so short of defenders.
Blues boss Alex McLeish said he believed the naming of seven subs should be allowed in the Championnship, like it is the Premier League, not only to widen choice but to aid morale as not so many players would have to be omitted from match duty.
Laws' reaction? "We couldn't fill seven substitute places!"
CLICK ON GREEN PLAY BUTTON ABOVE TO SEE MATCH PICTURES
What do you think? Post your comments below.
READ MORE
Blades Watch 08-09 - The Season So Far
Owls Watch 08-09 - The Season So Far
Watch Premiership highlights, international football, golf, tennis, darts and much more
Football headlines
More Blades
More Owls
More Spireites
More Rovers
More Reds
More Millers
More Ice Hockey
More rugby league
More rugby union
More boxing
Sports columnists
All sport categories
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
