Fulham (who a couple of weeks back were 1/50 to be relegated) leapfrogged Blues in the table and moved closer to their own "great escape" whilst pushing Blues closer to the trapdoor.
As I sat on a wall outside the Eight Bells pub near Putney Bridge, looking at the two pints I'd had bought for me (the bar was rammed, so it was "doubling-up" time) and thinking how evil alcohol was and how I knew I wouldn't drink them, I also thought "today's the day - Blues won't let us down again". They did though. Why did I think it might be any different? (Probably the 18 pints of Carlsberg the night before...)
In the only change from the side that drew with Liverpool, Damien Johnson returned at the expense of the injured (but still present) Mehdi Nafti. There was also a change on the bench, with Gary McSheffrey (finally) being left out of the sixteen.
The first half was a bit of a non-event, to be honest. After a nervy opening Blues settled down quite well and looked fairly comfortable - not excellent or anything, but solid enough without any real danger. A couple of balls didn't quite fall for Mikael Forssell and James McFadden when well placed, but generally Blues did enough to go in level at half-time. I genuinely felt that it had been a good first half performance and Blues could go on and build on it. That was probably the alcohol too...
Of course, Blues being Blues, that didn't happen. A long, looping free-kick into the area early in the second half found Blues defending as they have done lately - appallingly. Sure enough, Brian McBride (one of the best headers of the ball in the country) was left totally unmarked and powered a header home. Fulham didn't really deserve it, but Blues are good at gifting goals (especially from set pieces) and so a nervy set of opponents were suddenly galvanised and Blues were up against it.
In truth, Blues never really looked like getting an equaliser, and when Franck Queudrue (on for the injured Liam Ridgewell) slipped and allowed Eric Nevland to break through to make it 2-0, the game was over. Blues had had to go for the game, and got caught out.
The final few minutes were played to a backdrop of boos from the Blues fans, saved for when their own team were in possession, together with chants of "you're not fit to wear the shirt". It was very strange, not least because neither McSheffrey or Ridgewell were on the pitch. It was also stange, because it was done with such venom. I actually don't think it was directed at the players, as such - I think it was just a general outpouring of dissatisfaction from people. The club has gone stale from top to bottom, really. Let's be honest, it's a bit crap at the moment - it hasn't been any "fun" since the days of Robbie Savage, in all honesty.
The players were left bemused by the abuse, and rightly so, because I don't necessarily think they deserved it. There's no lack of effort, as such - they're just not good enough as a team. Some individuals are, but as a team, they're in a position that reflects their ability. James McFadden looked perplexed by the abuse at the end, and sort of shrugged his shoulders at the travelling fans - not in a dismissive or particularly bad way, but simply in a confused manner.
As I say, the team isn't good enough. Radhi Jaidi was excellent today and has had a good season (better than last season at a lower level), but the fact remains that a pairing of him and Ridgewell at the back just isn't good enough at this level. There's Championship centre half pairings that I can think of that are better - Shittu and DeMerit, Roger Johnson and Darren Purse, Barnett and Albrechsten. The Blues team just isn't good enough. It's that simple, really.
What hampers them more is questionable tactics. Again today, Blues played a direct style and bypassed the midfield. I'm not saying it's our old favourite, "hoofball" - it's just a direct approach. It's fair enough to use it - plenty of teams do. You need to have the right personnel to do it though, and I'm sorry, but McFadden and Forssell don't suit it. Their best performances as a pairing were at West Ham and at home to Spurs. On both occasions, balls were played into their feet and there was neat interplay between them and the midfield. Passing was short. That's what they're best at. They are not good when it comes to the direct approach. Any centre half, when facing that approach (balls in the air, balls into channels) would rather mark Forssell or McFadden than Cameron Jerome. Jerome is the best centre forward that Blues have if that's the way they want to play, but he's not being played. It also totally negates having Olivier Kapo wide left, as he gets little or no supply and his role becomes a disciplined positional one, which isn't his game. If you're going to play a direct game, you may as well put Stuart Parnaby wide left as he is more disciplined - it's not attacking, but it's about picking the players to play the system you want.
With Bolton beating Sunderland, the chances are that Blues will be relegated. They should beat Blackburn (the fact is that if you can't beat that sort of team in a final-day home game when you HAVE to win, you deserve to be relegated) but they need to rely on the worst team in Premier League history and FA Cup finalists probably not prepared to go all out to win doing them a favour. It's not impossible, but it is unlikely.
The truth is though, that the teams who deserve to go down will go down, and those who deserve to stop up will stop up. Bolton and Fulham have taken their chances lately, and fair play to them for doing so. Blues have had countless chances to get themselves out of this mess, but haven't. Whilst Fulham and Bolton have ground out wins, Blues have picked up the odd draw at home and said, "it's ok, we'll do it next time". Well, it's too late now. The two teams who aren't doing enough to stop up are Reading and Blues, and that's why it's likely the pair of them will go down next week.
I don't want to look back with rose-tinted spectacles, but under Steve Bruce, you always fancied Blues to get a result in these sort of games. It didn't always happen, but it did quite often. I think back to big home games against poor(er) opposition during Bruce's reign - the likes of Bolton, Fulham, etc - and Blues would often get their win. Even this season, under Bruce, Blues beat Wigan at home. Under Alex McLeish, they've drawn at home with Reading, Fulham and Derby. Yes, under Bruce we only drew at home with Sunderland, but as I say, it didn't happen all the time. You did always fancy Blues in those games though, and you don't anymore. Games like today were what Steve Bruce was good at, and the jury is still out when it comes to his successor. Blues have had their chances (those home games I mention, plus trips to Wigan and Fulham) and with a little bit more thought and preparation, I think they might just have picked up enough points to have secured survival now.
It's difficult to know what else to say, really - I'm as disillusioned by it all as most of you are. I don't think the players deserved the abuse they got, as I don't think there is a lack of effort, but they're not good enough. The league table doesn't lie.
Bring on Swansea...