CHE’S THE SILVER LINING FOR MONK
Poacher rescues a point
BIRMINGHAM boss Garry Monk claimed his side “let Blackburn off the hook” after a thrilling finale saw two goals scored in the last 10 minutes.
Blackburn came from behind to lead 2-1 with five minutes to go after Charlie Mulgrew curled in from a corner before Danny Graham struck in the 83rd minute.
But the Blues were indebted to the goalscoring skill of Che Adams, who scored the opening goal of the afternoon and an 85th-minute equaliser to take his tally to 21 for the season – the first Birmingham player to notch 20 goals since Steve Claridge achieved the feat 24 years ago.
“That was the silver lining,” said Monk, “he now has to continue what he is doing.
“We are all delighted for him. It is not just his goals, it is his all-round performance.
“What should have been three good points ended up being a battling draw. The lesson is that when you are ahead you have to go for the kill.”
In the early stages both teams operated a sounding out policy and it was not until the ninth minute that Birmingham came close to opening their account. A Jota free-kick into the heart of Blackburn’s defence resulted in David Raya, Rovers’ Spanish goalkeeper, making a top-quality save to keep out a Lukas Jutkiewicz header.
Raya again had to show his quality by diving to stop a Maxime Colin shot, scooping it off the line.
The pressure was ominous for Blackburn. Birmingham their tails up and, in the 16th minute, Adams notched the opening goal.
Gary Gardner won the ball off Amari’i Bell and slipped his pass down the channel to Adams, who smartly scored with a low cross-shot to the right of Raya.
Blackburn had little choice but to drop back on the defensive to contain Birmingham. But they demonstrated a determination not to surrender without a fight and, in the 31st minute, Graham, their leading scorer, was denied an equalSHEFFIELD iser by a diving Lee Camp after the home defence had been guilty of sleep walking.
Rovers were galvanised and seven minutes into the second half Mulgrew produced a perfect corner from the right which went straight into the net, despite several Birmingham players on the goal line.
Raya was again the hero as he saved from Kerim Mrabti, while sub Connor Mahoney went close to snatching a late winner for the home team.
Graham then brought the game alight by putting Blackhad burn into an 82nd-minute lead with a low angled shot, only for Adams to pop a minute later to score from a narrow angle.
Rovers boss Tony Mowbray was far from downcast as he praised Mulgrew. “That is 23 goals for Charlie over the last two seasons which is not bad for a central defender,” he said.
“My dressing room is frustrated we didn’t get three points. Never mind we halted our losing run. I have no fears with my team. We need to build the squad to threaten the top six.”