# 1996–97 Birmingham City F.C. season

The 1996–97 season was Birmingham City Football Club's 94th in the Football League. They finished in tenth position in the 24-team Division One, the second tier of the English football league system. They entered the 1996–97 FA Cup at the third round, losing to Wrexham in the fifth, and entered the League Cup in the first round and lost to Coventry City in the second.

## Season summary

This was the first season under the managership of playing legend Trevor Francis, appointed in May 1996 after the dismissal of previous incumbent Barry Fry. Francis introduced players with top-level experience such as Manchester United captain Steve Bruce. There were a significant number of transfers and loans with Peterborough United, Fry's new team.

## Football League First Division
### Match details

| Date | League position | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 18 August 1996 | 8th | Crystal Palace | H | W | 1–0 | Devlin 25' | 18,765 |
| 24 August 1996 | 5th | Sheffield United | A | D | 4–4 | Furlong 9', Newell 37', Devlin 75' pen., Hunt 83' | 16,332 |
| 7 September 1996 | 20th | Tranmere Rovers | A | L | 0–1 | | 8,548 |
| 10 September 1996 | 19th | Oldham Athletic | H | D | 0–0 | | 17,228 |
| 14 September 1996 | 14th | Stoke City | H | W | 3–1 | Furlong (2) 2', 65', Legg 32 | 18,612 |
| 21 September 1996 | 17th | Manchester City | A | L | 0–1 | | 26,757 |
| 28 September 1996 | 18th | Queens Park Rangers | H | D | 0–0 | | 17,430 |
| 8 October 1996 | 23rd | Huddersfield Town | A | L | 0–3 | | 10,904 |
| 12 October 1996 | 18th | Bradford City | H | W | 3–0 | Devlin (2) 1', 50', Hunt 88' | 25,157 |
| 15 October 1996 | 11th | Ipswich Town | H | W | 1–0 | Bowen 50' | 15,664 |
| 18 October 1996 | 13th | Oxford United | A | D | 0–0 | | 7,594 |
| 26 October 1996 | 15th | Norwich City | H | L | 2–3 | Devlin (2) 40', 86' | 18,869 |
| 29 October 1996 | 16th | Portsmouth | A | D | 1–1 | Furlong 22' | 6,334 |
| 2 November 1996 | 20th | Port Vale | A | L | 0–3 | | 8,388 |
| 13 November 1996 | 16th | Bolton Wanderers | H | W | 3–1 | Furlong 55', Bowen 56', Todd 81' o.g. | 17,033 |
| 17 November 1996 | 14th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | W | 2–1 | Breen 8', Legg 58' | 22,627 |
| 20 November 1996 | 14th | Charlton Athletic | A | L | 1–2 | Legg 13' | 8,574 |
| 23 November 1996 | 10th | Swindon Town | H | W | 1–0 | Furlong 29' | 16,559 |
| 26 November 1996 | 9th | Reading | A | D | 0–0 | | 8,407 |
| 30 November 1996 | 7th | Norwich City | A | W | 1–0 | O'Connor 62' | 12,764 |
| 3 December 1996 | 8th | Barnsley | H | D | 0–0 | | 24,004 |
| 7 December 1996 | 8th | Grimsby Town | H | D | 0–0 | | 17,001 |
| 20 December 1996 | 9th | Southend United | A | D | 1–1 | Devlin 88' | 5,100 |
| 10 January 1997 | 18th | Stoke City | A | L | 0–1 | | 10,049 |
| 18 January 1997 | 15th | Reading | H | W | 4–1 | Furlong 33', Devlin (2) 56' pen., 75, Gilkes 89' o.g. | 15,363 |
| 29 January 1997 | 15th | Queens Park Rangers | A | D | 1–1 | Devlin 36' | 12,138 |
| 1 February 1997 | 16th | Bolton Wanderers | A | L | 1–2 | Devlin 56' | 16,737 |
| 4 February 1997 | 17th | West Bromwich Albion | H | L | 2–3 | O'Connor 14', Devlin 55' pen. | 21,600 |
| 8 February 1997 | 19th | Portsmouth | H | L | 0–3 | | 15,897 |
| 23 February 1997 | 20th | Port Vale | H | L | 1–2 | Devlin 8' pen. | 13,192 |
| 26 February 1997 | 20th | Swindon Town | A | L | 1–3 | Ablett 22' | 7,428 |
| 1 March 1997 | 20th | Grimsby Town | A | W | 2–1 | O'Connor 60', Forster 61' | 17,609 |
| 4 March 1997 | 20th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | L | 1–2 | Forster 70' | 19,838 |
| 8 March 1997 | 20th | Southend United | H | W | 2–1 | Forster 6', O'Connor 37' pen. | 13,189 |
| 13 March 1997 | 16th | Manchester City | H | W | 2–0 | Furlong 51' pen., Francis 69' | 20,084 |
| 16 March 1997 | 19th | West Bromwich Albion | A | L | 0–2 | | 16,125 |
| 22 March 1997 | 19th | Sheffield United | H | D | 1–1 | Legg 53' | 14,969 |
| 29 March 1997 | 18th | Crystal Palace | A | W | 1–0 | Grainger 41' | 16,331 |
| 31 March 1997 | 16th | Charlton Athletic | H | D | 0–0 | | 14,525 |
| 5 April 1997 | 13th | Barnsley | A | W | 1–0 | Grainger 12' | 13,092 |
| 8 April 1997 | 13th | Oldham Athletic | A | D | 2–2 | Furlong 17', Grainger 30' | 5,942 |
| 12 April 1997 | 12th | Huddersfield Town | H | W | 1–0 | Jenkins 90' o.g. | 14,394 |
| 15 April 1997 | 12th | Tranmere Rovers | H | D | 0–0 | | 22,364 |
| 19 April 1997 | 12th | Bradford City | A | W | 2–0 | Devlin 22', Furlong 86' | 15,824 |
| 26 April 1997 | 10th | Oxford United | H | W | 2–0 | Devlin 54', Bowen 87' | 16,109 |
| 4 May 1997 | 10th | Ipswich Town | A | D | 1–1 | Devlin 81' | 20,570 |

### League table (part)

Final Division One table (part) :
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 8th | Port Vale | 46 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 58 | 55 | +3 | 67 |
| 9th | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 18 | 12 | 16 | 64 | 60 | +4 | 66 |
| 10th | Birmingham City | 46 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 52 | 48 | +4 | 66 |
| 11th | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 63 | 56 | +7 | 65 |
| 12th | Stoke City | 46 | 18 | 10 | 18 | 51 | 57 | +6 | 64 |
| Key | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points |
| Source | | | | | | | | | |
Note that goals scored took precedence over goal difference as a tiebreaker in the Football League.

### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Source:

## FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| Third round | 4 January 1997 | Stevenage Borough | H$^a$ | W | 2–0 | Francis 27', Devlin 64' pen. | 15,365 |
| Fourth round | 25 January 1997 | Stockport County | H | W | 3–1 | Furlong 29', Devlin 48', Francis 69' | 18,487 |
| Fifth round | 25 January 1997 | Wrexham | H | L | 1–3 | Bruce 37' | 21,511 |
    a. The match was drawn to be played at Stevenage Borough's Broadhall Way ground, but the venue was switched on police advice.

## League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| First round 1st leg | 21 August 1996 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | W | 1–0 | Devlin 49' pen. | 5,132 |
| First round 2nd leg | 4 September 1996 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | W | 2–0 3–0 agg. | Newell (2) 40', 86' | 20,050 |
| Second round 1st leg | 18 September 1996 | Coventry City | A | D | 1–1 | Daish 88' | 11,828 |
| Second round 2nd leg | 24 September 1996 | Coventry City | H | L | 0–1 1–2 agg. | | 15,281 |

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Player | Club† | Fee |
| August 1996 | Steve Sutton | Derby County | Free |
| 28 October 1996 | Chris Holland | Newcastle United | £600,000 |
| November 1996 | Martyn O'Connor | Peterborough United | £500,000$^a$ |
| 20 January 1997 | Anders Limpar | Everton | £100,000 |
| 27 January 1997 | Kenny Brown | West Ham United | £75,000 |
| January 1997 | Nicky Forster | Brentford | £700,000 |
| March 1997 | Bryan Hughes | Wrexham | £800,000 |
| May 1997 | Darren Wassall | Derby County | Undisclosed$^b$ |
    a. The deal also included Andy Edwards moving in the other direction.
    b. The move was part of the deal in which Jonathan Hunt moved in the other direction for a £500,000 fee.

### Out

| Date | Player | Fee | Joined† |
| September 1996 | Paul Barnes | £350,000 | Burnley |
| October 1996 | Bart Griemink | £25,000 | Peterborough United |
| October 1996 | Steve Finnan | £300,000 | Notts County |
| October 1996 | Gary Poole | £250,000 | Charlton Athletic |
| November 1996 | Jae Martin | £25,000 | Lincoln City |
| November 1996 | Andy Edwards | Undisclosed$^a$ | Peterborough United |
| December 1996 | John Cornforth | £25,000 | Wycombe Wanderers |
| January 1997 | Gary Breen | £2.5m | Coventry City |
| 10 February 1997 | Louie Donowa | Free | Peterborough United |
| 27 March 1997 | John Frain | Free | Northampton Town |
| 15 April 1997 | Anders Limpar | Contract cancelled | (AIK) |
| May 1997 | Jonathan Hunt | £500,000$^b$ | Derby County |
| June 1997 | Wayne Dyer | Released | |
| June 1997 | Steve Castle | Released | |
| June 1997 | Steve Sutton | Released | |
    † Brackets round a club denote the player joined that club after his Birmingham City contract expired.
    a. The move was part of the deal in which Martyn O'Connor moved in the other direction for a £500,000 fee.
    b. The deal also included Darren Wassall moving in the other direction.

### Loan in

| Date | Player | Club | Return |
| 3 September 1996 | Chris Holland | Newcastle United | 28 October 1996 |
| October 1996 | Marco Gabbiadini | Derby County | One month |
| 31 October 1996 | Matt Jackson | Everton | 20 December 1996 |
| 28 November 1996 | Terry Cooke | Manchester United | One month |
| 23 December 1996 | Birkir Kristinsson | SK Brann | 1 February 1997 |
| 28 December 1996 | Kenny Brown | West Ham United | One month |
| 26 March 1997 | Darren Wassall | Derby County | End of season |

### Loan out

| Date | Player | Club | Return |
| 21 August 1996 | Jae Martin | Lincoln City | Three months |
| 9 September 1996 | Bart Griemink | Barnsley | One months |
| 19 September 1996 | Ricky Otto | Charlton Athletic | Two months |
| 1 October 1996 | Jon Bass | Carlisle United | One month |
| 19 December 1996 | Mike Newell | West Ham United | February 1997 |
| 24 January 1997 | John Frain | Northampton Town | 27 March 1997 |
| 3 February 1997 | Steve Castle | Leyton Orient | One month |
| 6 February 1997 | Louie Donowa | Walsall | End of season |
| 13 December 1996 | Louie Donowa | Peterborough United | Two months |
| 6 February 1997 | Ricky Otto | Peterborough United | End of season |
| 17 March 1997 | Mike Newell | Bradford City | End of season |

## Appearances and goals

    Numbers in parentheses denote appearances made as a substitute.
    Players with name in italics and marked * were on loan from another club for the whole of their season with Birmingham.
    Players marked † left the club during the playing season.
    Players listed with no appearances have been in the matchday squad but only as unused substitutes.
    Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward
Players' appearances and goals by competition :
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| GK | ENG | Ian Bennett | 40 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 47 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | NED | Bart Griemink † | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | ISL | Birkir Kristinsson * † | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | ENG | Steve Sutton | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Gary Ablett | 39 (3) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 46 (3) | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Dave Barnett | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Jon Bass | 11 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | IRE | Gary Breen † | 20 (2) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 25 (2) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Kenny Brown | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Steve Bruce | 30 (2) | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 37 (2) | 1 | 9 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Andy Edwards † | 1 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | IRE | Steve Finnan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | John Frain † | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Martin Grainger | 21 (2) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 (2) | 3 | 6 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Matt Jackson * † | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | JAM | Michael Johnson | 28 (7) | 0 | 1 (2) | 0 | 0 (2) | 0 | 29 (11) | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Gary Poole † | 9 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12 (1) | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Darren Wassall * | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| MF | WAL | Jason Bowen | 19 (6) | 3 | 1 (2) | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 21 (9) | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Steve Castle | 4 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 (4) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Terry Cooke * † | 1 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | SCO | Paul Devlin | 32 (6) | 16 | 3 | 2 | 3 (1) | 1 | 38 (7) | 19 | 6 | 2 |
| MF | ENG | Louie Donowa † | 0 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (4) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Chris Holland | 28 (4) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 (4) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | WAL | Barry Horne | 33 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Bryan Hughes | 10 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Jonathan Hunt | 6 (6) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 (2) | 0 | 7 (8) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | WAL | Andy Legg | 22 (11) | 4 | 2 (1) | 0 | 3 (1) | 0 | 27 (13) | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| MF | SWE | Anders Limpar † | 3 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Martyn O'Connor | 24 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 (4) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| MF | ENG | Ricky Otto | 1 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Steve Robinson | 6 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Paul Tait | 17 (9) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 18 (10) | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Nicky Forster | 4 (3) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 (3) | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | SKN | Kevin Francis | 4 (15) | 1 | 1 (1) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 (16) | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Paul Furlong | 37 (6) | 10 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 43 (6) | 12 | 5 | 1 |
| FW | ENG | Marco Gabbiadini * † | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Mike Newell | 11 (4) | 1 | 0 (1) | 0 | 4 | 2 | 15 (5) | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Players not included in matchday squads :
| Pos. | Nat. | Name |
| FW | ENG | Paul Barnes † |
| MF | WAL | John Cornforth † |
| MF | ENG | Wayne Dyer |
| FW | ENG | Jae Martin † |