Barnsley Beckons

26 Aug 2021 | 16 comments

Barnsley

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Birmingham City

In Off The Post

The following article has been written by one of our Trust members.  They are the opinions of that person and not necessarily those of Blues Trust.  Would you like to contribute a discussion point of your own about Birmingham City Football Club?  If so, we would be delighted to hear from you.

After a glorious week of wallowing in the joy of scoring five goals at Luton, our next league game at Barnsley should hold little fear. However, every Blues supporter with experience knows that this is not necessarily the case. We came good at Luton and were good value with an all-round near perfect performance. Question now is, as obvious at night follows day, can Blues take it on to Barnsley, not necessarily scoring five goals, but scoring enough to maybe win or simply to avoid a defeat?

My opinion is that Barnsley play open football and that will suit us, with freedom hopefully for our forward players to do what we inflicted on Luton, namely attacking intent. Scott Hogan has no doubt profited from the arrival of the immensely popular Tahith Chong and also the attacking success so far of the lively Bela. Wins away at Sheffield United and Luton, together with zero goals conceded and six scored, does auger well.

Barnsley beckons, but what does Lee Bowyer need to do in order to keep the bus trundling on?  Very little many may say, and understandably so. However, my firm view is that we need a solid, dependable goalkeeper. What we have is decent and relatively ok at Championship level, which may be acceptable should we remain in this division, but if this is to be our season for a play-off spot then this position in the team could make all the difference.

Keeping this squad playing in their true positions is what Lee Bowyer has set out to do, not only for the on-field success of getting points on the board but also for us supporters to understand and keep it simple. Bela for example is quite an improvement under Bowyer, with his tracking back and defensive awareness as well as energetic wing play in posing an attacking threat. Chong and Bela are, so far this season, proving a danger to opponents that keep us on the front foot. We have not had that for a few seasons now.

League performance is now so important, with wins the sole aim and draws being fine should we struggle for consistency. We have all seen now what a result at Luton can bring to the overall levels of hope and belief. Add that to the Sheffield United result, away from home again, and the miserable Saturday afternoons that we have had to endure over recent seasons could soon be forgotten.

One major factor about being a Blues supporter is the resilience of bouncing back and keeping the faith. Hard at times, but it doesn’t take much to get us going again. Barnsley next up and I get the feeling this last weekend of August will be fondly remembered. As stated, my hope for the transfer window closure in a few days time will be the acquisition of a commanding goalkeeper. Others will no doubt have their own thoughts about what is still needed I’m sure, and might perhaps put forward their own priorities.

Mitchell Bray

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16 Comments

  1. Jonno

    Mitchell Bray Blues Trust don’t seem very active in pushing for an update on the Staduim. The number of loyal supporters who are losing patience should be your organisation concern.

    • Blues Trust Admin

      Thanks for your comment Jonno. Please be assured that the Trust is extremely concerned about the situation concerning the closed stands at St Andrew’s and we share the frustrations that you highlight. Many Trust members are directly affected, including several that currently sit on the Trust’s Board. Representations have been made to the club and we will continue to do so until the situation is either satisfactorily resolved or a full explanation is provided by the club so that we all know where we stand.

      At a time when the fortunes of the team appear to be on the rise it is completely unacceptable that so many, many Blues fans are denied access to watch them play and give our fulsome support.

      We will share more as soon as we can.

      Blues Trust.

  2. paul harris

    i have a feeling that graham might well make the bench or even play,bella is inconsistant and needs pushing,think blues team will be as it was last weekend tho,no changes.

    • David Jevons

      Why worry about the keeper..Sarkic is doing just fine.

  3. Smithy

    Surely it would help everyone if we actually knew who owns or more importantly is able to update fans on the stadium repairs. My view is that nobody is actually able or allowed to update us. Sad state of affairs.

  4. David Jevons

    Nothing wrong with the keeper in my opinion

  5. Dean

    Sadly, the Blues Trust has turned into another website about views regarding fanciful dreams of promotion play off. The ownership of the club should remain the sole purpose of the Trust

    I remember back in 2011 and, the hopes of trying to get a voice on the board of the club, when I sat down with the likes of Dan Ivery and Margaret Decker 10 years on nothing has changed. We still have incompetent owners and the stadium issues are the tip of the iceberg. I doubt that Edward Zheng got any grilling from the trust representatives at the recent Q&A.

    I can say that I won’t be renewing my membership when the time comes. 10 years of stagnation is enough

    • Blues Trust Admin

      Thank you for your comment Dean.

      Your narrow interpretation of the Trust’s role is misplaced. The ownership of the club is a very important consideration for the Trust, but we have other objectives too. Not least, being a democratic and representative voice of the supporters of the club and also trying to achieve the greatest possible supporter and community influence in the running of the club.

      To try and achieve these objectives a strong body of membership is vitally important for the Trust. And as a membership organisation, the Trust makes no apology for providing members with opportunities to share their views on a whole range of issues relating to the club. And that includes the fortunes of the first team.

      But turning to your substantive point, you make it sound like the Trust is solely responsible for delivering change at the club and you express disappointment that supporter representation at board level has not been achieved. May we remind you that such a move cannot be enforced unilaterally. There has to be a willingness on the part of the club to firstly consider such an initiative and then, to facilitate its achievement. It is a source of immense frustration to the Trust that the club has, so far, been unwilling to even discuss such a step let alone encourage its development. In fact, dialogue with the club on almost any matter of importance is virtually non-existent. Indeed, we seldom receive the courtesy of a response to the representations that we make.

      So what would you have us do? Give up and go home……? No. The football club is too important to us to do that so we will continue to push on in the hope that one day, perhaps even soon, the climate will change and our club will truly begin to embrace supporter engagement. It is happening elsewhere, and increasingly so, so we live in hope. Indeed, we are encouraged that the Government’s ongoing Fan Led Review, which the Trust actively participated in, will deliver outcomes that require clubs like ours to engage more fully with fans. We will see in the autumn when the Reviews findings are published.

      We sincerely hope you will reconsider your decision to lapse your membership. The Trust needs more members….many more…..and not less if it is to improve its chances of becoming a voice of influence for hard pressed Blues supporters.

      Blues Trust

    • Tilton Rod

      Crikey Dean, cheer up mate! Surely you’ve not forgotten the words to Keep Right On? I completely understand your frustration…I share it in fact…but not the negativity. Given that the club has been determined to treat us supporters as mushrooms for the last 10 years, how is that the fault of the Trust?

      They say it takes two to tango, and as I know only too well if the lady says she doesn’t wanna dance she won’t. But if the Fan Review delivers then change will eventually come.

      I don’t want the Trust to throw in towel. It seems to me that they are continuing to try to make things better for us by seeking to hold the club to account. What I want is the club to show more respect to its supporters, and less contempt. Why no recent update on the closed stands for example? But if you think there are better ways of doing this Dean, tell us what they are.

      Turning to the football what a performance and what a result last weekend. Best Saturday night I’ve had in ages! Dare we dream for a repeat today…? We’ll see, but whatever happens I’m happy that LB is moving us in the right direction.

      One more thing…Ronaldo back to Utd? Who cares. But Deeney to the Blues….?! Now you’re talking. Watch this space….

      KRO

    • WayCoolBlue

      Even Daniel Ivery is only interested in his own persona and online Image

      Just wanting to be the 1st to break a story.

      They are all in it for themselves all trying to make themselves look big.

      I have seen a crane and also a large yellow truck outside the ground I have also seen workmen on the roof so the work is being done hopefully it will be done soon because I don’t want to be missing out on every other game particularly when I paid full price for my season ticket it’s OK them saying I will get the money back I’ve been told how much the refund would be per game but I haven’t received a penny yet.

      But blues trust as in the name we supposed to trust them to support the fans but they seem to tickle us with a little bit of information and then not mention it ever again.

  6. Mitchell Bray

    Very interesting comment made by Jonno regarding the stadium update etc.and why Blues Trust should be treating it as a priority. They obviously do and attempt at every level to get answers. However my point is this – Jonno on board as a basic member adds more clout to the cause and rightly so. Bigger the supporters group, bigger the impact. My role is totally independent of the BT- just a basic member. Therefore Jonno and more could make that extra difference between being just heard and being taken seriously.

  7. Smithy

    So Alen Halilovic has joined Reading. Not that sorry but suppose money was his goal.Pity he didn’t score more for Blues.

  8. Mitchell Bray

    Excellent result today. Different Blues this season and confidence appears really strong. Second half domination pleasing. Nice to be in a good place at last.

  9. Smithy

    Excellent point today at Barnsley.Should have been three – hence the need for a proper goal scorer.

  10. Mitchell Bray

    DEENEY to Blues. Feeling in my water.

  11. Smithy

    Icing on the cake. Top six assured. Troy will frighten the Championship

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