Gary Rowett went to great lengths to remove himself from the stress of the Championship relegation battle on Sunday by running the London Marathon. While Birmingham City fans agonised over the game between Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield Wednesday, Rowett was en route to a personal best over 26.2 miles in the capital.
Wednesday’s 3-1 win, which dragged Blues back into the bottom three with two games to play, was thrust upon Rowett moments after the finish. For some, the euphoria of completing a marathon would have turned to agony, but Rowett is trying not to get caught up in the emotions of the uncontrollables.
He said: “I got to the hospitality tent afterwards and the security guy said, ‘I’m a massive Bluenose, can I have a photo? Have you heard about the result?’ He said 3-1. At that point I didn’t want to react either way and then he obviously told me Sheffield Wednesday.
“It is what it is. I’ve said that since day one. You can’t rely on other people’s results, you can’t be disappointed because somebody else has turned up and won a game of football because they deserve the three points if that’s what they have done.
READ: Rowett outlines Sanderson stance after Blues star’s drink-driving charge
READ: Rowett gives injury update on 'inspirational' Jutkiewicz before Huddersfield
“You have to take care of your own backyard. I wasn’t sitting there watching the game which probably helps at this stage of the season.”
Despite Rowett’s best efforts, Blues haven’t taken care of their own business in recent weeks. A trip to Rotherham was supposed to yield three precious points, all it actually did was heighten pressure and expectation going into this weekend’s match at Huddersfield Town. The six-pointer at the John Smith’s Stadium no longer feels like a game where a point will suffice.
Only a win will give Blues more than a fighting chance in their final bout of the season against Norwich City. It would also remove Huddersfield from the equation and send the Terriers down to League One.
Rowett always exudes confidence, and his pre-Huddersfield press conference was no different. He accepts the predicament, but most of his answers in a 20-minute media briefing came back to the controllables.
“The other results are just a game of maths,” he insists. “I’ll be aware of other games and other results, I’ll be aware of where we are and I’ll try and make good decisions around that, but a lot of it is about our performances.
“The aim for us really is to forget about all those external things and control the factors we can control, which is our preparation, team selection, the mentality and the motivation, and then it’s about putting it out there on the pitch.
“What the team have shown against a good team like Coventry is that when the mentality is spot on and our work-rate is brilliant – in front of our fans it’s of course a little bit easier – we can produce that type of performance. The focus for me is purely on the 90 minutes and how our team go about the game. For me, if we get that bit right, the rest will take care of itself. If it doesn’t, that’s not something we can do anything about.”
You wouldn’t expect Rowett to publicly admit to losing sleep over the permutations at play this weekend. There is a nightmare scenario where Blues could lose their Championship status before the final day.
That would take a defeat to Huddersfield, wins for Sheffield Wednesday and Plymouth against West Bromwich Albion and Millwall respectively, and Blackburn Rovers to avoid defeat to Coventry City.
“I’ve never been one to say ‘this amount of points keeps you up’,” Rowett added. “That’s for other people to try and work out. I’m not going to compete with a supercomputer and try and predict where we’re going to finish.”
Blues will almost certainly need another win. They might need two. What they cannot do on Saturday (3pm kick-off) is lose, something they have done 15 times in their 22 Championship away games. The time for talking has stopped, Blues have to deliver.
