Whether you like it or not, Birmingham City are well and truly in a relegation scrape.

One win in the last seven games and a late winner from Dorian Dervite for Charlton against Bournemouth means the Blues sit just five points ahead of Millwall in relegation zone.

Without trying to sound pessimistic, after the crucial game with Millwall on Tuesday night, Blues could actually be in the bottom three.

It’s now a time when the strongest characters need to stand up and for players to make a name for themselves by grinding out points in the toughest of games or scoring the goals that fire the side out of danger.

Our awful record at home is one of the problems the side have faced this season and if it doesn’t start improving we simply won’t stay up.

Following last month’s defeat to Huddersfield I tweeted; “St. Andrews: once a Premier League fortress, now a Championship bouncy castle,” and sadly I still stand by that view now.

Think back to just five years ago where we went almost a whole year in the Premiership without losing, matching the likes of the two Manchester clubs at St. Andrews and memorable goals like Lee Bowyer’s winner and Super Kev’s equaliser against Chelsea and Arsenal, respectively.

An away day at Birmingham City used to be a very difficult place to pick up three points, but how times have changed. Barnsley, Yeovil and Charlton are just some of the teams we’ve lost to at home this season. Before the season started each team in the league would have been expecting to pick up three points in each of these games.

Much has been said about the off field problems the club has been facing, but there isn’t much of an excuse for losing games like these when it could be the difference between another season in the Championship or relegation to the third tier for the first time since 1995.

It is a good job that our away form has been excellent throughout the season otherwise Lee Clark and his side might be fighting a losing battle.

Some people say it’s because we play better on the counter attack away from home rather than being expected to dominate in the home games and others believes it could be because of the negative support around the ground with attendances declining and the protests.

But despite their poor record at St. Andrews so far this season, it could all well change with a win against Reading or Bournemouth.

The results against Derby and Burnley prove that we tend to raise our game against the top sides. If the fans can back the players right until the very end like those games then why wouldn’t you back the Blues to get a result versus Reading?

In the Bournemouth game, one thing Lee Clark’s men have on their side is that the Cherries have very little to play for. With a big gap between themselves and relegation, Bournemouth may have taken their foot of the pedal just like they did at Charlton on Tuesday night. It’s a great chance to pick up three points and could be massive, depending on how the game against Millwall in mid-week goes.

So it’s time for the young boys in the side to become men in a position that is still in their own hands.

Who will be the player that makes a difference? Will it be Macheda’s goals, Huw’s great form, Robinson’s drive or Randolph’s match winning saves?

Only time will tell and just maybe that could start with Reading.

By Oliver Osborn (The Bluenose Bible)