Birmingham City boss Gary Rowett has reiterated the importance of the fans following a 3-0 win over play-off hopefuls Coventry City on Saturday afternoon.
The scoring was opened by an unfortunate own goal from Sky Blues defender Bobby Thomas before Ivan Sunjic added a second for Rowett’s side. Top scorer Jay Stansfield completed the rout with a third goal on the hour mark, his 12th of the campaign to put the game beyond the visitors.
This is the second home clean sheet since Rowett’s return following the 1-0 win over Preston North End at Easter. The former Milwall manager is in his second Blues tenure as he replaced Tony Mowbray, who has taken medical leave until the end of the season.
The win took the West Midlands side out of the bottom three as they overtook Huddersfield Town and Sheffield Wednesday, who themselves could only muster a draw. It was even more prominent as well with the Blues’ new American owners in attendance, where they whipped the crowd up before the game.
Speaking via the club’s official website, a delighted Rowett raved:
“I think we have shown what we can do. We have shown the atmosphere at St. Andrew’s. We have spoken about that before and how powerful our fanbase are. I think that is five full houses and five wins, so if that doesn’t tell you everything you need to know, it certainly lifts the players, it lifts the intensity.
“It just felt like a really positive day, but it is a positive day because we have worked incredibly hard. The team, I have spoken before, have got a lot of talented players but that is nothing without a bit of hard work and desire, that feeling of having to prove yourself every game.
“That then brings out the quality and I think there were lots and lots of moments today that showed the quality of our players and the three goals epitomise that.”
Birmingham now enter a crucial period for their survival hopes as they face already relegated Rotherham United and 22nd placed Huddersfield away in their next two matches.
Writer’s View
A few eyebrows were raised when Rowett was announced in March as it seemed to be a gamble, but it appears to be paying off with the Blues winning two of their last four matches to resurrect their hopes of staying up.
The two games that were lost were close, including a narrow defeat against Leicester City. Whilst hopefully we will see Mowbray return to work, Rowett hasn’t harmed his chances of landing the role full-time if his predecessor cannot return.
