MATCH STATS BIRMINGHAM CITY: Taylor, Tebily, N’Gotty, Jaidi, Sadler, Dunn, Danns, Muamba, McSheffrey, Campbell, Jerome. Subs: Kilkenny (for Danns, 34), Gray (for Jerome, 57), Larsson (for Muamba, 77), Doyle, Kelly. NORWICH CITY: Gallacher, Colin, Doherty, Shackell, Drury, Robinson, Safri, Etuhu, Croft, Earnshaw, Huckerby. Subs: Fleming (for Drury, 45), McVeigh (for Croft, 84), Lewis, Dublin, Ryan Jarvis. SCORERS: Norwich: Sadler (og, 66) MAN OF THE MATCH EN & EDP: Gary Doherty ATTENDANCE: 20,537 (650 Norwich) REFEREE: Mike Pike (Cumbria) ADDED TIME: First half: 2 mins Second half: 4mins YELLOW CARDS: Birmingham: Muamba (foul on Safri, 14) RED CARDS: None SHOTS ON TARGET: Birmingham 3, Norwich 8 SHOTS OFF TARGET: Birmingham 6, Norwich 2 CORNERS: Birmingham 4, Norwich 3 FOULS:  Birmingham 10, Norwich 11 OFFSIDES:  Birmingham 1, Norwich 1

Tuesday October 17, 2006
CHRIS LAKEY

Norwich City manager Peter Grant couldn’t have asked for a better start to his new career as City won an away match for the first time this season.

Not since a Robert Earnshaw goal secured the points at Cardiff in the last away trip of last season have City won on their travels.

But this was a new Norwich City, one we hadn’t seen for several weeks and several games. Instead of the confused under-achievers whose confidence had positively leaked during the latter stages of Nigel Worthington’s reign, the Grant version looked composed, confident – and hungry for success.

Grant, as promised, tinkered with the City line-up, bringing back Gary Doherty, after a one-match ban, for club skipper Craig Fleming in the centre of defence, with Youssef Safri promoted from the bench to start in a three-man midfield, with Andy Hughes sidelined because of a hamstring injury. He was also forced to name keeper Joe Lewis on the bench, with on-loan Lee Camp out with a back injury.

City got off to a good start, with Lee Croft able to make a couple of early forays down the right flank, where he was allowed plenty of room. However, the first danger came from the left, with Earnshaw playing in Dickson Etuhu, who made space for himself and put in a good shot from the edge of the area which Maik Taylor did well to palm away to his left.

Etuhu found himself in space in the home penalty area minutes later, but couldn’t quite get in a shot on the turn.

It was an encouraging start for City, with patience the byword – and Etuhu, clearly ordered to play a major supporting role behind Earnshaw, was at the heart of City’s best early moves.

New City manager Peter Grant gives midfielder Carl Robinson a few instructions at St Andrews.

Birmingham fans were clearly not enamoured with their side on 15 minutes when City strung together a dozen or more passes, during which time they embarrassed more than one home player, before losing possession.

Doherty found Taylor in the right place when he got a good head to Safri’s 17th-minute cross, but at the other end Gary McSheffrey got the slightest of touches on Mat Sadler’s left-wing cross to have Paul Gallacher’s heart skipping.

Birmingham manager Steve Bruce, having already spent most of his time on the edge of his technical area, must have felt like running on to the pitch with instructions when Etuhu was given the freedom of the pitch down the right flank but couldn’t find Earnshaw in the middle.

But there was no time for City to admire their good work, with Doherty and Jason Shackell combining to keep out Cameron Jerome at the other end, and Gallacher getting enough on a Bruno N’Gotty header to preserve the status quo.

Good work by Etuhu saw Muamba lose possession and although Huckerby picked up the pieces, his effort from the edge of the area was easy enough for Taylor to collect.

There was little between the sides, which, considering recent results, would have pleased the new City manager – and the fact that little had changed in terms of personnel and tactics suggests that he would be allowed to take credit.

Jason Shackell watches as the ball drops in the net – but admitted it was not his goal.

Bruce would have felt very different, particularly as he watched his defenders regularly make errors – like the one by Olivier Tebily that allowed Huckerby to waltz past him and put in a teasing cross to the back post which Taylor did well to tip away from danger.

Birmingham’s best work was at the other end, although McSheffrey allowed a chance to go begging just after the half-hour mark with a poor first touch and Doherty got his head in the way of a David Dunn pile-driver. Shackell took the ball off the toes of DJ Campbell from Dunn’s slide-rule pass into the area as Birmingham at last gave their fans something to warm their hands.

The trouble was, they were warm, not hot – and City needed to take advantage before the temperature at St Andrew’s shot up.

It went up a few degrees just before the interval, when Shackell failed to clear an easy ball, allowing Campbell to have a dig at goal, only to see his chip hit the top of Gallacher’s net.

It was the closest Birmingham had come to scoring – and their fans let them know it as they went off at half-time.

Half-time: Birmingham City 0, Norwich City 0

Grant was forced into a reshuffle for the second half, Craig Fleming going to right back, with Jurgen Colin switching to left-back in place of Adam Drury. Colin looked uncomfortable as he moved inside early in the second half, but played a perfect ball to Earnshaw in the area only for the Welshman to see his effort saved by the legs of Taylor.

Jurgen Colin (left) celebrates Norwich City's winner with Darren Huckerby and Jason Shackell.

Earnshaw saw another opportunity – the best so far – fall his way 10 minutes into the second half, this time Huckerby playing a perfect pass after a Birmingham corner had been cleared. Earnshaw scampered away, took the ball perfectly in his stride but then saw Taylor dive full stretch to his left to keep the ball out of the net.

Croft then fired a shot straight at Taylor after a Huckerby corner while Campbell shot a yard over Gallacher’s bar as both sides wrestled for the vital initiative.

City were, as Grant promised, showing no fear, but they desperately needed a goal – and it came on 66 minutes, when Huckerby’s free kick was headed home by Shackell, although there was some debate as to whether or not it came off the head of Sadler.

But a goal it was – and a deserved lead for City.

Sadler tried to make amends with a good run into the area which ended with a left-foot shot just past Gallacher’s far post as the match became a nervous exercise for both sets of fans.

Doherty was proving to be an awesome presence at the heart of City’s defence. Dunn skipped across the City defensive line and fired in a shot that whizzed over Gallacher’s bar as Birmingham blew and blew – but couldn’t blow the house of Grant down.

Result: Birmingham City 0, Norwich City 1