By Our Sports Reporter at St. Andrew’s
TODD CANTWELL proved he still has the Midas touch, delivering a captain’s performance to hand Blackburn Rovers a massive 1-0 win and leave Birmingham City licking their wounds.
On an afternoon where the stars of both sides traded blows, it was the Rovers skipper who shone brightest, firing home a 70th-minute winner that might just be the goal that secures Blackburn’s Championship status.
Before Cantwell’s heroics, the story was all about the men between the sticks. Birmingham’s James Beadle produced a highlight reel in the first half that had the St. Andrew’s faithful rubbing their eyes. The Brighton loanee denied Cantwell and Harry Pickering with a sensational double-save that seemed to signal it wasn’t to be Rovers’ day.
At the other end, Balazs Toth was equally inspired. The Blackburn keeper tipped a fizzing effort from South Korean star Paik Seung-ho over the bar, ensuring the deadlock remained intact as the tension mounted.
POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS
Birmingham will wonder how they walked away with nothing. New star signing Ibrahim Osman had the goal at his mercy after some dazzling wing-play by Patrick Roberts, but the youngster somehow clattered his shot against the woodwork from six yards out.
The breakthrough finally came with 20 minutes to go. Ryoya Morishita—a constant thorn in the Blues’ side—drove forward and slipped a perfectly weighted ball into the path of Cantwell. The former Norwich man didn’t hesitate, meeting the ball with a first-time clinical finish that finally beat the defiant Beadle.
Birmingham threw the kitchen sink at Rovers late on, with Tommy Doyle forcing another world-class stop from Toth, but the visitors held firm.
While Blackburn celebrate a massive six-point cushion from the drop zone, Chris Davies’ Birmingham side are left to reflect on a “what if” afternoon. They had the chances and the stars, but they lacked the finishing touch that Cantwell provided in spades.
BIRMINGHAM CITY (4-2-3-1): Beadle 8; Laird 6, Klarer 7, Panzo 6, Osayi-Samuel 6; Iwata 7, Paik 7; Osman 5 (Stansfield 6), Roberts 7, Gray 6; Ducksch 5.
BLACKBURN ROVERS (3-4-3): Toth 9; Atcheson 7, McLoughlin 7, Wharton 8; Alebiousu 6, Tronstad 7, Forshaw 7, Pickering 7; CANTWELL 9, Ohashi 8, Morishita 8.
Star Man: Todd Cantwell (Blackburn Rovers)