At
the time of writing, the winners of the Championship are nowhere
near known. As I sit here and type this article, there are still
two games to play in the league, and at the top and bottom of the
league, it couldn’t be closer.
Sitting at the top of the tree are Birmingham City, who, by the time
this hits the streets, could already have been promoted. It is also
possible, that if Birmingham City are true to form, then it’ll
go down to the final game of the season.
The race for the Premiership has been tight for the most of the season,
as the teams in the top half of the table almost leave it to each other
to try and secure promotion.
The only thing that is sure at the moment is that Luton Town have been
relegated and that Blues, Derby County and Sunderland will (at worst)
finish in third place – but finishing third is not what the doctor
ordered, promotion, especially for Birmingham City has been the expectation
since the season began back in August last year – and that is
what the fans and also the players are expecting.
The Championship race has taken more twists and turns than a Formula
One race around Silverstone this season and with two points separating
the top three, it looks set to be a nervy finish for the teams and
supporters involved.
As mentioned earlier, Birmingham City top the table after a superb
victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers. Having taken the lead through
loan signing, Andy Cole, the Blues then tried their hardest to press
the self-destruct button and two goals from Michael McIndoe put the
score at 2-1.
But strikes from Nicklas Bendtner and Cameron Jerome shifted the impetus
back in Steve Bruce’s men a favour, and with an injury time penalty
save by Irish goalkeeper Colin Doyle added to the drama, it saw the
Blues reside at the top of the league.
“It was a fantastic game to watch for the neutral, but it was
horrible to be involved in, it really was. We have shown all season
that we never know when we are beaten. We’ve got a young bunch
of lads who work their socks off from the first minute of the game
to the last,” said Bruce.
“To get the goals when we did in the game was crucial – especially
Jerome’s. He’s not scored in a while but he has always
given 110% whenever he has been called upon. When was one-on-one with
the keeper, I think everybody was screaming for him to pass it, but
Cameron (Jerome) is a confident and determined player and he slotted
it away nicely.
“And when Doyle saved the penalty, well, it really summed up
our never-say-die attitude that we have nowadays. Colin took his chance
very quietly when he took the number one spot from Maik Taylor, and
whilst he is still young, he has a great future in front of him,” added
the Blues boss.
The same weekend, Sunderland chose the wrong time to lose their first
game of 2007 when they were beaten 3-1 at Colchester in the tight surroundings
of Layer Road.
Since Roy Keane took over, the Sunderland side have been on a fantastic
run and gave themselves the best possible chance of returning to the
Premiership at the first attempt, much like Birmingham City.
Keane said: “We’re in with a shout of getting promoted,
we’re not going to deny that, but we are taking one game at a
time at the moment. The players have been focused the whole season
of getting into this position and we are determined to not let this
opportunity slide away from us.
“The defeat against Colchester United was disappointing but we
got over that the second we left the ground as we need to be focused
on the next game, not on the one that has just passed. The lads have
shown me on numerous occasions that when they have been beaten, they
come out fighting and give me a performance.
“We need to win our next two games and if we do that, I’d
like to think that we’d be there or thereabouts at the top of
the table, which would be a fantastic reward for a season of hard work.”
Derby County are still sniffing around the promotion places and are
currently lying in third position. In the last couple of weeks, their
push for the top has taken a dent, giving the advantage to Birmingham
and Sunderland, but one thing is for sure is that they will keep on
fighting for promotion, as will the other two teams.
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