The Tigers were 3-2 winners at St Andrew’s on a chaotic afternoon in the Midlands
After 47 games, Hull City finally ended their long wait for successive wins by ending Birmingham City’s 29-game unbeaten run at St Andrew’s in what was a breathless, dramatic encounter which finished 3-2.
City were in front after 11 minutes when Oli McBurnie fed Kyle Joseph inside the box and his shot turned into his own net by Jack Robinson, but the hosts were the better side and deservedly drew level just before the half-hour when Jay Stansfield turned in from close range after Ivor Pandur couldn’t hold a shot.
Both benches were embroiled in a brawl before the break but there was still time for Regan Slater to divert in a stunning header from Lewie Coyle’s cross to give the Tigers the lead once again in what was a classic half of Championship football.
Robinson was dismissed early in the second period after collecting two yellow cards in the space of a minute for something he said to referee Ruebyn Ricardo, who had endured a difficult afternoon.
City looked to have killed it off in stoppage time when Joe Gelhardt slammed in to make it 3-1 but there was time for more drama when the referee gave the hosts a dubious penalty which Stansfield converted.
Sergej Jakirovic made two changes from the side that beat Sheffield United before the international break, with Amir Hadziahmetovic replacing the injured John Lundstram, and Kyle Joseph returned from illness to take the place of Darko Gyabi, who dropped to the bench, where there was a return for fit again Joel Ndala but there was no Kasey Palmer in the travelling party.
City started slowly but were in front 10 minutes in when McBurnie fed Joseph to take it past the goalkeeper and slide towards goal but it was diverted into the net by Jack Robinson to set 2,000 away fans into raptures behind the opposite goal.
Coyle and Akintola were both cautioned in a frantic opening to the game while the hosts felt they should have had a penalty after a tussle between Charlie Hughes and Keshi Anderson. You’d file that in the ‘I’ve seen them given’ category.
The Tigers’ lead did feel precarious given they had almost no contol in the game and were on the backfoot, struggling to keep possession and it was little surprise when the hosts levelled just before the half-hour. Patrick Roberts’ wonderful ball into the box found Paik who saw his shot saved by Pandur into the path Stansfield to tuck into the net.
While it may have come to nothing in the end, McBurnie’s battling qualities were evident when he forced Klarer to give away a corner after grappling with him from halfway.
Moments later, both sets of players and benches went awol after a Joseph challenge on Leonard which went unpunished. Blues boss Chris Davies went head-to-head with Marko Salatovic, before security staff were involved and it all kicked off. At the end of a five-minute stoppage, Gelhardt and Stansfield were booked, along with Jakirovic and ex-City star Tom Huddlestone.
If that wasn’t dramatic enough, Slater’s terrific header in added time at the end of half gave City the lead once again from Coyle’s cross to leave St Andrew’s stunned.
Jakirovic made a change at the start of the second half with Matt Crooks replacing Akintola, and he had to make a second a few minutes later when Coyle was hurt and had to be replaced by ex-Blues man Cody Drameh.
Goalkeeper Beadle was booked after clattering Gelhardt outside the box before Jack Robinson’s day went from bad to worse when he was sent off for a second yellow card, collecting two of those in quick succession.
Twenty minutes were left when Jakirovic withdrew McBurnie and Hadziahmetovic with Liam Millar and Darko Gyabi coming on and on the break, Gelhardt and Millar both saw efforts saved by Beadle. That came after Pandur had repelled Gray’s effort and was booked for apparent time-wasting. Joseph was replaced by Enis Destan
Off the bench, Kyogo should have scored inside the final 10 minutes before the referee made an error in booking Egan for a foul committed by Crooks, already on a yellow card.
Chances to kill it off continued to come and go for City with Millar firing wide, before Drameh crashed an effort off the bar.
As the game headed into seven added minutes, goalkeeper Beadle came up for a corner and headed over as a wild game contiuned to flow from one end to the other.
Finally, deep into stoppage time City sealed it when Millar fed Gelhardt to slam in and make it 3-1 to the visitors. There was still drama when the referee gave a foul which was outside the box, inside, and Stansfield tucked home the penalty to set up a grandstand finish.
City held on and claimed a first away win of the season in one of the most dramatic games they’ve been involved in for some time, and they finally have back-to-back wins.
Birmingham City: Beadle; Iwata, Klarer, Robinson, Cochrane; Leonard, Paik; Roberts, Anderson, Gray; Stansfield. Allsop, Osayi-Samuel, Neumann, Sampsted, Doyle, Koumas, Fujimoto, Dykes, Kyogo
Hull City: Pandur, Giles, Hughes, Egan, Coyle (c), Amir, Slater, Joseph, Gelhardt, Akintola, McBurnie. Subs: Phillips, Ajayi, Millar, Drameh, Ndala, Famewo, Gyabi, Crooks, Destan.
Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo
Man of the Match: Regan Slater
Attendance: 27,815, 1,961 from Hull City
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