Blues Going Good

Birmingham City 2-1 Southampton (Women's Championship)

I spent Saturday evening running stats on the New Zealand verses Sri Lanka cricket match as I prepare for the summer ahead and some smaller sized balls to enjoy. This morning I'm up and taking our dog for an hours play before the wife nips to the shops and I head out for a first Sunday game in a while, my first women's league match of the season.

I stopped doing Sunday's due to spending more time with the family but after last weekend's trip to Poland I'm making up for lost time, and trying to recuperate some money spent in the museums, bars and restaurants of Krakow too.

It will also be my first trip to Birmingham City's St Andrews which is pretty crazy considering I've been to Birmingham hundreds of times, not even driven past or spotted the floodlights previously so there's that bit of kid inside of me who's really looking forward to chalking off a ground I should have long since done.

Having been to Villa Park only last week, I know it's an hour door to door with a good run and on Sunday's you get just that, not much traffic on the road as I set off at midday down the A42 and M6.

Birmingham are top of the league, going well and are looking good for promotion after three seasons outside of the WSL. Southampton entered the Women's Championship in 2022, exactly the same time as Birmingham but from different directions, they have held their own and are eighth this season, well above any danger of relegation you would think.

I'm driving down the A38 past Villa Park as the radio buzzes ahead of the Carabao Cup Final today between Newcastle United and Liverpool, I'm trying to get back in time to watch that game which starts at 4:30pm, I'm on the Middleway ring road before pulling off on a side street five minutes walk from St Andrews, another beauty of covering women's football is you get to park pretty near to these huge stadiums hosting the events.

The Venue

I'm walking up the Coventry Road past a McDonalds before finally seeing the stadium up on a hill, blue gates, white painted roofing as I ask a steward which turnstiles to enter.

It's a contactless entrance but I can't get my phone to work so end up twatting around for a few minutes, nobody in sight to help as I finally find a way to scan a barcode and get in, before ordering a pie and brew at the kiosk.

It's pukka, steak and ale, wrapped in plastic, you can't go wrong with them and you know what you get, as I listen in to a few Southampton fans in the home end harp on about their men's teams failings this season.

Fed and oiled I walk through to the open, I'm in the Kop stand which unlike most other Kops I've been in, is at the side of the pitch, it's high seats and high roofs offer an open to the elements experience, gladly it's not raining but if it was, I think most of the people inside this arena would get quite wet.

It's unusually simple but I quite like it inside, the seating is modern, but if feels older, a bit like Old Trafford looked 30 years ago, the stand I'm in wraps around to the stand behind the goal to my right, the Main Stand opposite, is two tiered with a low roof, ageing amongst the rest of the stadium, the Railway End to my left tall, with a large lower tier and smaller upper tier, it looks quite odd as I keep staring up at it.

The Game

It's bloody freezing as I left my coat behind for the cooler much lighter Gillet, the remains of a cold cup of tea failing to warm me up, Birmingham are neat, as expected, but Southampton are decent, Molly Pike who I've seen previously play for Leicester, glides in possession with number ten on her back.

There's not much action but a penalty is awarded on eight minutes after a ball is played into the box and handled, the diminutive Simone Magill placing home with ease to put the home side one up, the fans, a good few hundred in the lower tier where I'm sat, lightly cheer and applaud, I think they all expect it to be a Blues win today.

Whilst Birmingham are good, defensively solid, organised in midfield and dangerous out wide, I'm impressed with the Saints, who are quite a young side with a couple of teenagers in their starting eleven. They have no fear against the table toppers and themselves don't allow many chances whilst looking to attack on the break.

The Score

On 36 Birmingham's persistence in searching for a second pays off when a lovely floated cross by Holloway is headed home at the back post by Choe Yu-Ri, she's been the Blues most impressing forward player and grabs a deserved goal, but Southampton go up the other end and immediately win a free kick, a lovely cross in by Palmer is touched en-route by Peplow and Southampton's first shot on goal is a goal.

That will give the away side confidence going into the break and in the second half they come out strong, but never really penetrate the Blues defence. I really like their ying and yang centre back combination who have hardly looked troubled, Shannon Cooke is tall, blonde haired, besides the tiny bobble headed Rebecca McKenna, who despite being small for a centre half, punches well above her weight in performance and reads the game terrifically well.

The Birmingham defence is that good, American goalkeeper Adrianna French hardly has a shot to save, Southampton see plenty of the ball but never look like scoring again, Birmingham themselves have a couple of sniffs, one goal is ruled out for the ball previously going out of play, but in fairness neither keeper is tested too much in the second half.

The Stars

Southampton shown plenty of promise with their young players whilst I liked the look of Georgia Mullett up front, out wide, eighteen year old Vivienne Lia had a trick or two but was brilliantly looked after by Blues right back Martha Harris, they brought on Brazilian playmaker Ivana Fuso late on who carried the ball well.

If goals win matches, then defences win titles, and in goalkeeper Adrianna Franch, behind two solid centre halves, Birmingham have a decent spine to start from, allowing those more further forward to cause trouble in attack. South Korean Lee Geum-Min was very good on the left whilst captain Christie Harrison-Murray was inventive whenever she was on the ball.

The Verdict

I still remember Birmingham as one of the leading women's sides, winning titles and cups with household names, Rachel Unitt, Karen Carney, Rachel Williams, Eni Aluko, it would be good to see them in the top division and I believe women's football needs those names of past eras for some history to hold on to, why under the current regime of Tom Brady and co, can't Birmingham be great again, in both men and women's departments.

Southampton impressed me, a young team with plenty of potential, who will be ok this season, and hopefully stronger still next, the development of the women's game is down to a strong domestic competition, so when you see that there's not much between those at the top, and those down below, you have a feeling that the future of the game is really going to improve some more.

The Teams

Birmingham City: Adrianna French, Martha Harris, Christie Harrison-Murray, Rebecca Holloway, Simone Magill, Lucy Quinn (Ivana Fuso 62), Rebecca McKenna, Shannon Cooke, Emily van Egmond (Cho So-Hyun 76), Choe Yu-Ri (Tegan McGowan 76), Lee Geum-Min.

Southampton: Frances Stenson, Milly Mott, Tara Bourne, Paige Peake, Jemma Purfield (Isabel Milne 80), Chloe Peplow, Laila Harbert, Aimee Palmer (Rachel Rowe 69), Molly Pike, Vivienne Lia, Georgia Mullett.

2:00pm Kick Off. Sunday 16th March 2025, St Andrews, Birmingham (att 1,000 est).