OTHER SPORT
THE DREAM THAT IS DRIVING BRUCE
Birmingham boss Steve Bruce
STEVE BRUCE has set his team the task of winning Birmingham’s first championship in 12 years as the crowning glory to a tough season.
The Blues have not won a league title since they topped the old Second Division in 1995, but Bruce says it is on
the agenda now - to go with an instant return to the Premiership.
“We’ve got to win two games,” said Bruce ahead of today’s home fixture with Sheffield Wednesday. “It’s over and done with and we are champions if we do that. And we are capable of it. That’s all I’ve harped on about. We must do our job.”
Bruce was close to the sack in October when Birmingham lost at home to Norwich – the club were ninth and fans were baying for him to go. Thirty-two games later and he is ready to take Birmingham back into the Premiership 12 months after being relegated.
Bruce had to decide whether he wanted to stay with the Blues. He had tried to buy big and establish Birmingham as a top-10 Premiership side, but the policy flopped with a few of his star buys not delivering.
“I took a two-week sabbatical to think of what was needed,” said Bruce. “I knew there was a huge job in rebuilding the squad and I asked myself if I still had the hunger and desire to do it.
“Once I had come to that decision and decided I didn’t want to be associated with failure then it was action stations and away we went.
“Did I consider quitting? That’s the wrong word. It was left in my court. There were one or two restrictions. It was basically in my hands but there were the parameters I had to work within.
“I’ve been at Birmingham eight years, two as a player, and there is something in it I really enjoy. I feel for the club and the supporters even though they were chanting, ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’. I feel I’ve got a decent rapport with them.
“For myself I had to try and restore a bit of reputation. There have been a load of fans who wanted me through the door but now they might look at the bigger picture and think, ‘He hasn’t done a bad job again’.”
When Matthew Upson was sold to West Ham over his head in January, Bruce again had his back to the wall and dreadful results over Easter put him on the rack for a third time, before three successive victories.
“Other managers said the season after relegation would be horrible and that’s why not many go straight back up,” he said. “You’ve got the disappointment and the hangover. You’ve got to dismantle your squad, bring the wage bill down, get money in.
“You’ve got to get the faith back of the supporters and the people employing you. Yet we’ve been out of the top six only for two weeks, though there always seems to have been a crisis.”
Wednesday are on the verge of the play-offs after 11 games without defeat, the last five of them victories.
“They are confident, have a bit of swagger and are enjoying it,” said Bruce. “All of a sudden they can see a bit of light. If they can beat us, who knows?”
Last Sunday’s local derby win at Wolves convinced Bruce his team have matured.
He did not know whether to go to the pub last night, watch EastEnders with his wife or sneak a look at Sunderland’s live TV game with Burnley, but he knows what beckons.
“Easter? That was the worst I’ve felt,” he said. “But this would be the biggest achievement of my managerial career if we go up as champions.”
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