Birmingham City 2
Stevenage 1
League (League One)

Match report written by Neil Metcalfe, The Comet

Stevenage at least put up a fight but Birmingham City showed why they will win the League One title at a canter.

They came away with a 2-1 success at St Andrews, Kieran Dowell scoring the softest of soft penalties in the first half with Paik Seung-Ho added a second two minutes after the break.

Jake Young pulled one back in stoppage time but they could not find what would have been a shock equaliser.

There were two changes from the side that drew 1-1 with Mansfield Town on Saturday.

Jordan Roberts picked up a knock and was missing and was replaced by Eli King. Dan Sweeney also came out of the centre of defence, Charlie Goode returning to the starting line-up.

It was felt before kick-off that Stevenage needed to be strong defensively and frustrate the home crowd before going for a winner.

Two shots on target in the opening three minutes was perhaps not in the script then.

The first of them from Jamie Reid was a beauty, coming after a clever one-two with Dan Kemp and lashed towards the top corner as he moved into the middle.

Ryan Allsop made the save diving to his right and he then had to gather another effort, this time from Dan Phillips, after the corner was only partly cleared.

But Stevenage were not naïve enough to think that was going to be the pattern of the game and it wasn't long before the Blues began to create chances of their own, complete with relentless possession.

Most of those chances were sent off target, Dowell and Seung-Ho Paik missing a couple, and while their ploy to drop balls over the full-backs had some success, Boro were defending well.

In the end the only difference between the two teams in the half was that soft penalty.

Birmingham played a couple of passes outside of the box before sending one forward.

That caught Louis Thompson on the back foot and wrong side and when he flicked a hand out to Alfons Sampsted.

The minimal contact was not enough to divert the forward momentum of a fly yet the Birmingham fell to the turf and the penalty was awarded.

Dowell rolled the ball to the right of Murphy Cooper as he went the wrong way.

Nothing much happened after the goal, Birmingham still happy with their lot it seemed but the Boro keeper not needed to make a save.

He was needed to make a save two minutes into the second half but failed to do so as Paik found a gap inside his near post after a corner wasn't cleared.

Alfie May, who set that up moments after coming on, should have made it three when a slack header from Nick Freeman presented him with a good opportunity.

But Stevenage did at least rally after that and while they didn't always test Allsop, there was more to be happy with.

A run from Hanlan ended with a shot going a yard or so wide while a Thompson chip was just too high over the top.

Carl Piergianni directed a header on target but couldn't get the power on Reid's cross.

And they kept biting into the tackles, to the annoyance of the home crowd, before Young grabbed one back with a fine finish, guided side footed across goal and into the corner.

It was a deserved goal to send the Boro fans home, even if the Blues were probably just deserved winners.