Morrison removes Kus’ blues
TOMASZ Kuszczak may not have covered himself in glory but the goalkeeper’s blunder was forgotten when Michael Morrison drilled home Birmingham’s winner and ended their seven-game winless run in the Championship.
Hadi Sacko’s shot squirmed under Kuszczak in the first half after Jacques Maghoma’s clipped finish had opened the scoring for the Blues.
But Morrison’s finish ten minutes after the break, allied to a superb defensive display for the remainder, ensured there was no way back for Leeds.
Rowett was ready to stand by his man between the sticks – and admitted that his side were never in danger of losing when they managed to quell the Leeds crowd.
Rowett said: “We got into good areas often and limited Leeds in the second half. We were very strong and it suits us playing away from home.
“We showed character in the second half and were in control of the game. “It was a really strong, organised and tactically concentrated performance. We silenced the crowd and forced Leeds into errors.
“Kuszczak is disappointed with the goal, Sacko shouldn’t have scored from there.
“He made a mistake, players make mistakes and you hope they don’t make too many. But it was an honest mistake and I will support him through it. This win will give us a lift.”
Birmingham hit the front when Maghoma calmly fired home following a superb counter-attack. But Leeds got the equaliser that their superior possession and energy deserved when Sacko scored after a Kuszczak’s howler on 27 minutes.
Kuszczak made amends somewhat when he superbly blocked Luke Ayling's longrange thunderbolt on 35 minutes as Leeds continued to dominate.
Rowett’s men got their reward for a much brighter start to the second half when Morrison rifled into the roof of the net on 55 minutes after Leeds failed to clear a corner.
Morrison then came close to getting on the end of a David Cotterill’s cross shortly after as Birmingham took control.
Kuszczak showed great alertness to turn Stephen Gleeson’s sliced clearance away on 79 minutes as United cranked up the pressure.
He then saved smartly from Antonsson in the dying stages, before Kemar Roofe headed wide when unmarked as Birmingham survived seven minutes of injury time.
And a disappointed Garry Monk felt Leeds had been the architects of their downfall.
"The two halves were complete opposites. We were excellent in the first half but our softness cost us in the second,” he said.
“We got into dangerous situations and looked to be a team on the up. We needed to do more with our final ball.
“"We gave two soft goals away and gave ourselves an uphill battle again. It's very frustrating.
“I did not like that softness and I told the players that, when you are on the pitch you have to be a man, you have to put your body on the line and suffer.
“We gifted that game to Birmingham and I will not accept that. We did not have the determination and desire we need in the second half.”