PEAKY BLUNDERS

Keeper admits Blues have been Ruddy awful and says: We have failed to deliver and there was too much change...i feel for the fans

BY NEIL MOXLEY

JOHN RUDDY stood up to be counted as he analysed the wreckage of Birmingham’s relegation.

The home skipper admitted the squad was not good enough, slammed the “self-inflicted” wound of appointing Wayne Rooney and asking him to play ‘no-fear football,’ and apologised for the club’s drop into League One.

Ruddy was brutally honest as he dissected the failure to stay in the Championship as results elsewhere on the final day went against them.

He said: “This was a good performance but it had to be because, over the course of 46 games, the league table doesn’t lie. We have failed to deliver consistent performances and this is why we have found ourselves in this position.

“We didn’t do nearly enough leading up to this game.

“We are the only team in the league that hasn’t scored against Rotherham so those sort of games is where the damage was done.

“I hope everyone is accountable. We are, as players, and I am as an individual.

“There was a lot of change. Some of the change was enforced, some self-inflicted. I am a firm believer that, while an attractive style of play is good, you must have solid foundations to build from.

“But this does not excuse the fact that we as a group of players need to take care of our jobs better. I hope everybody who has made those decisions is accountable and takes responsibility.

“I feel for the fans. I’ve been here two years and they have been terrific. They helped us get over the line and stayed with us even when results weren’t going our way.

“As a group of players, I would like to apologise for not being with them throughout the course of the season as well.”

Ruddy is one of a clutch of 13 players who are either out of contract or returning to their parent clubs this summer.

The return of permanent manager

Tony Mowbray is unclear because of his medical issues and Gary Rowett admitted that he does not expect the call to take over either.

Ruddy added: “Relegation is not something I’ve experienced but it’s a situation the club has found itself in too many times and it is paramount that this is the last of those and there is a culture of positivity and success. The future’s bright. The owners have a plan and a project. Most of us won’t be here to see that come to fruition.

“This club will be in the Premier League within five years but they have to have shortterm goals as well as longterm vision – that’s the only way you can bring success.” Blues return to League One for the first time in 29 years despite a win earned through a 55th-minute goal from Seung-ho Paik.

They’d have stayed up if Blackburn or Sheffield Wednesday had lost or if Plymouth had failed to win at home to Hull.