Birmingham moved to within a point of the Sky Bet Championship play-off places with a 2-1 victory at St Andrew’s, a fourth consecutive home win that halted Watford’s five-game unbeaten run away from Vicarage Road.
Watford started brightly and Thomas Ince forced an early opening with a shot that beat James Beadle’s dive but drifted narrowly wide. Despite allowing Watford plenty of possession, Birmingham looked the more dangerous side and both goalkeepers were called into action early — Beadle tipping Othmane Maamma’s long strike wide, while Nathan Baxter produced a close-range stop to deny Phil Neumann after a clever Jay Stansfield run from a set-piece.
Birmingham took the lead shortly after the half-hour mark when Paik Seung-Ho dispossessed Hector Kyprianou, took a couple of touches and unleashed a fierce effort from outside the box that beat Baxter. Two minutes before half-time Demarai Gray doubled the lead with a superb finish, shifting onto his right foot inside the area and picking out the top-right corner.
The Hornets pushed after the break and had chances to get back into the game. Marc Bola’s close-range effort was tipped over by Beadle, and when Bola later played in Maamma, he rifled a shot past the goalkeeper to halve the deficit and give Watford hope. Mamadou Doumbia then forced another save from Beadle as Watford searched for an equaliser, but Birmingham held firm to claim the three points and move up to seventh, just one point behind Bristol City in the play-off spots.
Birmingham manager Chris Davies praised his players’ form and work-rate, highlighting Jay Stansfield’s contribution: “We’ve hit a good bit of form. Another challenging game but an excellent win for us. I thought [Jay Stansfield] was really good. His energy, his intensity, his play for the second goal was high level. It’s not just what he does going forward, it’s what he does the other way. He’s very professional, he does everything right.” On away form, he added: “We are who we are. We’ve been very close in some away games… We need to take each game as it comes – next is away at Southampton.”
Watford boss Javi Gracia acknowledged his side’s improved second-half performance but lamented mistakes that cost them: “After the good minutes in the second half, we had some moments to dominate the game and score, but we couldn’t do it. First half was the same – equal game, they took the chances they had and we paid for our mistakes. They showed their quality – Demarai Gray, great goal. We are getting better day by day – we are young – but I’m sure we’ll improve in the next games, we’ll improve and give the supporters what they deserve.”