# 1998–99 Birmingham City F.C. season

The 1998–99 season was Birmingham City Football Club's 96th in the Football League. They finished in fourth place in the Football League First Division, qualifying for the promotion play-offs, in which they were eliminated in the semi-final by Watford in a penalty shootout. Birmingham lost to Leicester City in the third round of the FA Cup and to Wimbledon in the third round of the Football League Cup.

## Football League First Division
### Match details

| Date | League position | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 8 August 1998 | 1st | Port Vale | A | W | 2–0 | Furlong 21', Adebola 68' | 10,465 |
| 16 August 1998 | 1st | Crystal Palace | H | W | 3–1 | Adebola 12', O'Connor 29' pen., Forster 90' | 16,699 |
| 22 August 1998 | 2nd | Sheffield United | A | W | 2–0 | Adebola 55', Forster 81' | 17,528 |
| 29 August 1998 | 4th | Barnsley | H | D | 0–0 | | 19,825 |
| 31 August 1998 | 5th | Bradford City | A | L | 1–2 | Ndlovu 56' | 13,910 |
| 8 September 1998 | 3rd | Bury | H | W | 1–0 | Adebola 20' | 15,935 |
| 5 September 1998 | 1st | Stockport County | H | W | 2–0 | Marsden 15', Hughes 67' | 16,429 |
| 12 September 1998 | 2nd | Bolton Wanderers | A | L | 1–3 | Rowett 40' | 19,637 |
| 19 September 1998 | 3rd | Grimsby Town | H | L | 0–1 | | 17,563 |
| 26 September 1998 | 7th | Norwich City | A | L | 0–2 | | 16,584 |
| 29 September 1998 | 5th | Portsmouth | A | W | 1–0 | O'Connor 59 pen. | 11,843 |
| 3 October 1998 | 4th | Tranmere Rovers | H | D | 2–2 | M. Johnson 40', Ndlovu 72' | 17,189 |
| 10 October 1998 | 3rd | Watford | A | D | 1–1 | Adebola 22' | 10,096 |
| 17 October 1998 | 2nd | Crewe Alexandra | H | W | 3–1 | Ndlovu 8', O'Connor 43' pen., Furlong 53' | 20,087 |
| 20 October 1998 | 2nd | Swindon Town | H | D | 1–1 | Marsden 58' | 19,485 |
| 25 October 1998 | 2nd | Queens Park Rangers | A | W | 1–0 | Adebola 6' | 10,272 |
| 31 October 1998 | 1st | Huddersfield Town | H | D | 1–1 | Ndlovu 53' | 19,170 |
| 7 November 1998 | 3rd | West Bromwich Albion | A | W | 3–1 | Ndlovu 5', 34', Adebola 12' | 19,472 |
| 14 November 1998 | 4th | Oxford United | H | L | 0–1 | | 18,216 |
| 22 November 1998 | 8th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | L | 1–3 | Furlong 21' | 23,037 |
| 28 November 1998 | 4th | Bristol City | H | W | 4–2 | M. Johnson 5', Ndlovu 11', Forster (2) 42', 72' | 17,577 |
| 5 December 1998 | 7th | Ipswich Town | A | L | 0–1 | | 15,901 |
| 12 December 1998 | 4th | Oxford United | A | W | 7–1 | Rowett (2) 16', 31', Furlong (2) 17', 43', Grainger 55', Ndlovu 72', Hughes 89' | 7,189 |
| 19 December 1998 | 7th | Sunderland | H | D | 0–0 | | 22,095 |
| 26 December 1998 | 4th | Sheffield United | H | W | 1–0 | Furlong 20' pen. | 22,005 |
| 28 December 1998 | 3rd | Bury | A | W | 4–2 | Furlong (2) 32', 56', O'Connor 35', Adebola 74' | 7,024 |
| 9 January 1999 | 2nd | Port Vale | H | W | 1–0 | Furlong 25' | 18,632 |
| 16 January 1999 | 4th | Barnsley | A | D | 0–0 | | 17,114 |
| 31 January 1999 | 4th | Bradford City | H | W | 2–1 | Furlong (2) 45', 90' pen. | 19,291 |
| 6 February 1999 | 5th | Crystal Palace | A | D | 1–1 | Furlong 50' pen. | 15,996 |
| 13 February 1999 | 5th | Stockport County | A | L | 0–1 | | 9,056 |
| 21 February 1999 | 5th | Bolton Wanderers | H | D | 0–0 | | 26,051 |
| 27 February 1999 | 5th | Grimsby Town | A | W | 3–0 | Ndlovu 36', Adebola 85', Rowett 90' | 7,807 |
| 2 March 1999 | 5th | Norwich City | H | D | 0–0 | | 20,749 |
| 6 March 1999 | 4th | Portsmouth | H | W | 4–1 | Adebola (2) 26', 60', Forster 50', Hughes 84' | 20,617 |
| 9 March 1999 | 4th | Tranmere Rovers | A | W | 1–0 | M. Johnson 46' | 7,184 |
| 13 March 1999 | 4th | West Bromwich Albion | H | W | 4–0 | Adebola (2) 24', 62', Ndlovu 50', Grainger 88' | 29,060 |
| 20 March 1999 | 4th | Huddersfield Town | A | D | 1–1 | M. Johnson 47' | 14,667 |
| 2 April 1999 | 4th | Crewe Alexandra | A | D | 0–0 | | 5,582 |
| 5 April 1999 | 4th | Watford | H | L | 1–2 | Holdsworth 87' | 24,877 |
| 10 April 1999 | 4th | Swindon Town | A | W | 1–0 | Rowett 83' | 8,896 |
| 17 April 1999 | 4th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | L | 0–1 | | 28,143 |
| 20 April 1999 | 4th | Queens Park Rangers | H | W | 1–0 | Forinton 85' | 20,888 |
| 24 April 1999 | 4th | Bristol City | A | W | 2–1 | Grainger 48' pen., Ndlovu 70' | 15,845 |
| 2 May 1999 | 4th | Ipswich Town | H | W | 1–0 | Furlong 60' | 27,685 |
| 9 May 1999 | 4th | Sunderland | A | L | 1–2 | Grainger 38' | 41,634 |

### League table (part)

Final Division One table (part) :
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 2nd | Bradford City | 46 | 26 | 9 | 11 | 82 | 47 | +35 | 87 |
| 3rd | Ipswich Town | 46 | 26 | 8 | 12 | 69 | 32 | +37 | 86 |
| 4th | Birmingham City | 46 | 23 | 12 | 11 | 66 | 37 | +29 | 81 |
| 5th | Watford | 46 | 21 | 14 | 11 | 65 | 56 | +9 | 77 |
| 6th | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 78 | 59 | +19 | 76 |
| 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 | | | | | | | | | |

### Results summary

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

### Play-offs

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| Semifinal 1st leg | 16 May 1999 | Watford | A | L | 0–1 | | 18,535 |
| Semifinal 2nd leg | 20 May 1999 | Watford | H | W | 1–0 1–1 agg. | Adebola 2' | 29,100 |
| Watford won 7–6 on penalties. Birmingham scorers: Grainger, Rowett, Bradbury, Hughes, Purse, Poole. ||||||||

## FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance | Report |
| Third round | 2 January 1999 | Leicester City | A | L | 2–4 | Robinson 35', Adebola 89' | 19,846 | |

## League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| First round 1st leg | 11 August 1998 | Millwall | H | W | 2–0 | Adebola 70', M. Johnson 87' | 14,133 |
| First round 2nd leg | 19 August 1998 | Millwall | A | D | 1–1 3–1 agg. | Adebola 45' | 4,478 |
| Second round 1st leg | 15 September 1998 | Macclesfield Town | A | W | 3–0 | Forster 66', Marsden 70', Rowett 89' | 2,275 |
| Second round 2nd leg | 22 September 1998 | Macclesfield Town | H | W | 6–0 9–0 agg. | Ndlovu (2) 7', 19', Askey 37' o.g., Marsden 57', Rowett 66', M. Johnson 89' | 3,443 |
| Third round | 28 October 1998 | Wimbledon | H | L | 1–2 | Marsden 34' | 11,845 |

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Player | Club | Fee |
| 13 August 1998 | Gary Rowett | Derby County | £1m |
| 10 December 1998 | Simon Marsh | Oxford United | £250,000 |
| 4 February 1999 | Graham Hyde | Sheffield Wednesday | Free |
| 23 March 1999 | David Holdsworth | Sheffield United | £1.25m |

### Out

| Date | Player | Fee | Joined |
| 2 July 1998 | Steve Bruce | c. £200,000 | Sheffield United |
| 23 October 1998 | Steve Barnes | Free | Barnet |
| 13 January 1999 | Paul Tait | Free | Oxford United |
| 1 February 1999 | Chris Marsden | £800,000 | Southampton |
| 22 June 1999 | Nicky Forster | £650,000 | Reading |

### Loan in

| Date | Player | Club | Return | Ref |
| 19 December 1998 | Fumaça | Catuense | 27 January 1999 | |
| 25 March 1999 | Lee Bradbury | Crystal Palace | 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 | Play-offs | Play-offs | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| GK | ENG | Ian Bennett | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | ENG | Kevin Poole | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Gary Ablett | 23 (3) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 (3) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Jon Bass | 9 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 (2) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Simon Charlton | 27 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 (1) | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Jerry Gill | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Martin Grainger | 30 (10) | 4 | 0 (1) | 0 | 2 (1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 (12) | 4 | 11 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | David Holdsworth | 8 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 (1) | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| DF | JAM | Michael Johnson | 43 (3) | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 50 (3) | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Simon Marsh | 6 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Darren Purse | 11 (9) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (1) | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 13 (11) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Simon Rea | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Gary Rowett | 42 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 49 | 7 | 5 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Darren Wassall | 0 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | GER | Tony Hey | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Chris Holland | 7 (6) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (4) | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 9 (11) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Bryan Hughes | 20 (8) | 3 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 22 (10) | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Graham Hyde | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| MF | ENG | Chris Marsden † | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| MF | NIR | Jon McCarthy | 35 (8) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 (8) | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| MF | CAY | Martyn O'Connor | 35 (2) | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 42 (2) | 4 | 7 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Steve Robinson | 20 (11) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 (11) | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | NGA | Dele Adebola | 33 (6) | 13 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 (1) | 1 | 39 (7) | 17 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Lee Bradbury * | 6 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 7 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Howard Forinton | 0 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (4) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Nicky Forster | 8 (24) | 5 | 0 (1) | 0 | 2 (2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 (27) | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Paul Furlong | 24 (5) | 13 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 28 (5) | 13 | 4 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Andrew Johnson | 0 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (5) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | ZIM | Peter Ndlovu | 37 (6) | 11 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 (1) | 0 | 43 (7) | 13 | 3 | 1 |
Players not included in matchday squads :
| Pos. | Nat. | Name |
| MF | ENG | Steve Barnes † |
| MF | ENG | Paul Tait † |
| MF | BRA | Fumaça * |