Town boss Mick McCarthy felt Jonathan Douglas’s tackle which led to his red card was harsh and changed the game as the Blues lost 3-0 at Birmingham City.
In the first of a series of pre-season reports, HarryfromBath assesses the mood around the Championship clubs by delving into their forums. Middlesbrough, Leeds and Sheffield Wednesday are under the spotlight in today’s notes.
Town’s relegation to the third tier for first time in 62 years was confirmed after a 1-1 draw with Birmingham City at Portman Road. The visitors took the lead in the seventh minute via Lukas Jutkiewicz before Gwion Edwards netted the equaliser a minute after the restart. The Blues had the better of a second half in which Alan Judge hit the post but were unable to find the winner which would have put off a relegation which has seemed inevitable for some months for a further week.
Ten-man Town fell to a 3-0 defeat away against fellow play-off challengers Birmingham City with Will Buckley, Jon Toral and Maikel Kieftenbeld on the scoresheet. Buckley made the most of some hesitant defending to put the home side ahead on 23 before Douglas was shown a straight red card just prior to the break and Toral and Kieftenbeld smashed home stunning second-half volleys to seal the victory.