I love St. Andrew’s, but Birmingham City should say goodbye

I love St Andrew’s (@Knighthead Park). I was enthralled with the scene as soon as I ascended the deteriorating stairs and saw the verdant field in front of me. Despite my many travels, this particular field felt unique.

That April of 1993, Derby County came to play a Terry Cooper-managed Blues team that was in the First Division relegation zone. With just 15,000 in attendance, hope was present despite the general gloom. The memory is primarily associated with the darkness and minor degradation.

After years of underinvestment, David Sullivan’s purchase of the club and its run-down grounds a month prior was like applying a defibrillator. The fact that Blues pushed for a victory but Darren Rogers was sent off and Paul Moulden scored a stunning late equalizer suggested something I would later discover. This was a club that could take away with one hand and offer with another.

This marked the beginning of my mild mistrust of the Blues and my love for a stadium that, to be honest, didn’t deserve it for a while. It was nevertheless heartening to know that it had been revived for the Sunderland match, even after thirty years had passed. Nothing compares to St Andrew’s pulsating to a late Blues triumph, and the sentiment that “it might be a ******** but it’s our ********” is something that will likely never go away.

The most inexcusable of the many humiliations inflicted upon Birmingham City by the previous owners was their disregard for St Andrew’s. For three years, who allows a football stadium to close partially?

The heart of Blues has always been in St. Andrew’s, and hearts are meant to have four chambers, not two. The old stadium saw matches between Barcelona and Roma; Aston Villa lost the first leg of the 1963 League Cup final 3-1; 16-year-old Trevor Francis scored four goals against Bolton; 16-year-old Jude Bellingham scored on his debut against Stoke; and a plethora of other memorable moments.

On the other hand, the possibility that the Blues will relocate to a new stadium on the former Wheels location in Bordesley Green seems encouraging. Despite my trust difficulties, society, football, and Birmingham City have all seemingly changed for the better.

It feels to me like moving houses. If your family and possessions accompany you, the experience can be bearable, if the house is adequate (West Ham anyone?). Since memories are stored in our minds, Moulden’s lavish barrage will always remain in the narrative, even when the clouds part.

Today, Birmingham City acquired the 48-acre site of the former Wheels Park in Bordesley Green, marking another step toward the club’s long-term goal under Tom Wagner and Knighthead.

We know that the club wants to develop the property into a multi-use stadium capable of hosting multiple sports. The ailing city council has reached an agreement to sell off a large amount of land in order to raise money for equal pay claims and layoffs. Council records state that up to 3,000 new employment will be generated.

Since Wheels Adventure Park was repurchased by the council in 2019, blues have been associated with the property.