BIRMINGHAM CITY 2, STOCKPORT COUNTY 0
Stockport County returned to League One action with an appearance under the lights, and before a crowd just shy of 25,000, at Birmingham City, but fell to a two-goal defeat as their three-match winning run in the third tier came to an end.
In what was a first trip in 23 years to St. Andrew’s, a ground at which the Hatters had suffered defeat on each of their last dozen visits spanning eight decades, as well as several dismissals of players during some of the more recent contests there, two Alfie May goals within nine first-half minutes consigned County to a second league defeat on the road.
The Hatters took the field on a wet Wednesday night in the West Midlands, showing just one change from the initial line-up for their most recent league fixture, at Burton, 11 days previously. Ibby Touray was the player recalled for a start, replacing Fraser Horsfall, who was serving a one-match suspension.
The third-placed Blues, sitting a couple of positions and three points above County at kick-off, included four full internationals among their starters, as well as goalkeeper Ryan Allsop, who had spent time on loan with the Hatters, albeit without making an appearance between the sticks for them, during 2010.
Aston Villa loanee Louie Barry was unsurprisingly subjected to some booing from supporters of the other, hosting club in the ‘second city’, but County’s top scorer produced the game’s first moment of magic with only five minutes played, delivering a pin-point perfect ball from the left to Will Collar whose subsequent shot cannoned off the underside of the crossbar and bounced on the line before spinning away from goal.
At the Hatters’ end, a dozen minutes later, the hosts fashioned their inaugural chance of note, as Alex Cochrane’s cross from the left was flicked narrowly wide of the near post by Keshi Anderson.
Birmingham took the lead shortly after the first half’s mid-point, when Anderson intercepted a Ben Hinchliffe throw before squaring to his left for May whose shot was deflected off Ethan Pye and into the net.
It was the first league goal the Hatters had let in for more five hours but, under 10 minutes later, they were to concede another to the same combination of home players, with Anderson delivering a low cross from the right to May, who fired home from close range.
Three minutes ahead of the break, County went close to halving the arrears, but were denied by a double save, as Allsop parried Barry’s first-time shot, before keeping out Kyle Wotton’s follow-up effort on the rebound.
County made a triple-substitution upon the resumption, bringing on Callum Camps, Jack Diamond and Tanto Olaofe, although the first attempt of the new half came courtesy of the hosts, as Tomoki Iwata stung Hinchliffe’s hands with a shot from the edge of the area.
All three replacements then proceeded to make their presence felt within a 10-minute spell, as the Hatters strove to get themselves back in contention. Diamond’s low drive forced Allsop to dive and smother; Olaofe won a free-kick to the left of the Birmingham ‘D’, that Barry took and which deflected behind off the home wall; and Camps drilled past the left upright from distance, before connecting with a cross from the right by Macauley Southam-Hales and volleying over.
At the other end, Anderson, from the right, teed up Jay Stansfield for a reverse kick, but the record divisional signing’s audacious effort was superbly tipped around the far post by Hinchliffe.
In the closing stages, Diamond fired narrowly past the left post from outside the box, but there was to be no consolation for the Hatters at what remains a rather unhappy hunting ground, where they last enjoyed the taste of victory 110 years ago.
Goals: May (25, 34) for Birmingham City.
Stockport (3-4-3): Hinchliffe; Connolly, Pye, Touray (Adaramola 80); Southam-Hales, Norwood (Olaofe 46), Bate (Camps 46), Rydel (Diamond 46); Collar, Wootton, Barry. Subs (unused): Addai, Hughes, Bailey.
Attendance: 24,863.
Report: Gareth Evans.