Birmingham City to 'focus on the process'
Birmingham City goalkeeper Ryan Allsop says the League One leaders will continue to "focus on the process" as they move closer to promotion.
Saturday's 1-0 win over Lincoln stretched Blues' lead at the top to 11 points with 12 games to go.
They also have a game in hand over nearest challengers Wycombe Wanderers.
Chris Davies' side have a 12-point cushion to the play-off places too with third-placed Wrexham, six points clear of Stockport, the likeliest challengers to the top two.
The win over the Imps was decided by Kieran Dowell's 70th-minute penalty and ensured Blues did not let momentum slip any further after suffering only their third defeat of the season at Bolton four days earlier.
"We wanted to bounce back and show what we're about really, like we have done all season and obviously the boys are working tirelessly hard," Allsop told BBC Radio WM.
"I think it shows in every game that we play, the energy that we show and the pressing and the way we play with the ball.
"To sustain that for the amount of games we have done so far... Obviously, we've got a few more games to go yet and we want to sustain that even further."
Birmingham hopeful on Allsop and Laird injuries
Blues do it game by game by game - Gardner-Hickman
The Lincoln victory was also a personal triumph for Allsop, back in the side after missing the Bolton defeat with an ankle injury, suffered late on in the win over Wycombe on 1 March.
Allsop said he "feared the worst" immediately after getting hurt, having had a similar injury in the past.
"I was quite worried straight away when it happened - it's an injury I've sustained before so obviously I feared the worst but the scan results didn't come back too bad," the 32-year-old said.
Allsop duly delivered a 20th clean sheet on his return to the side and was quick to praise the "phenomenal" defensive unit in front of him.
"We're a high energy team - the striker always starts that off for us - and then obviously the boys at the back have been phenomenal," he said.
"Teams slow the game down and try to make it difficult for us and rely on the counter-attack or set play, so we have to deal with it, which we've done magnificently this season."
Birmingham have the chance to move 14 points clear if they can beat Stevenage at home on Tuesday and Wrexham lose at Reading.
But despite a return to the Championship edging ever closer, Allsop says Blues boss Davies is drumming in the importance of not getting distracted by that.
"The gaffer talks about focusing on the process," he said, "and that's very much what we're doing - focusing day to day, week to week, making sure we come and perform to our highest level and keep that consistency and obviously keep that winning mentality."

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Coco Gauff used words and a mirror to persuade herself she could win the French Open
PARIS (AP) — A little bit of self-persuasion went a very long way for Coco Gauff, whose victory at the French Open gave the 21-year-old American a trophy she has long coveted, and a second major title. Gauff defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 on Saturday to add to her U.S. Open title two years ago. Sabalenka had been the more in-form player heading into the final and Gauff felt she needed some extra motivation. So she drew inspiration from Gabby Thomas, who became the women's Olympic 200-meter champion at last year's Paris Olympics. Thomas had kept writing down that she would be the Olympic champion in her Notes app, so Gauff tried adopting the same approach and grabbed a piece of paper. 'I wrote, 'I will be French Open champion 2025' like a bunch of times," Gauff explained. 'She (Thomas) wrote 'I will be the Olympic champion' and she ended up winning the gold. I think it's a great mindset that she had." Eight lines on a piece of paper written by Gauff late on a Friday night, then it was finally time for bed, time to rest. Not quite. Gauff then persuaded herself a little bit more, by staring at the mirror and convincing herself she was looking at the face of a soon-to-be French Open champion. 'Looking at myself in the mirror so I was trying to instil that belief, and obviously it happened. I didn't know if it was going to work or not. (But) it did," Gauff said, then laughed as she added: 'When you're desperate, you're just trying anything to think that it's going to help you win.' Gauff also posted on Instagram another message she wrote to herself four years ago, which started with the words 'I had a dream last night that I will win (the) French Open.' Job done. What also stood out during the 2 hours and 38 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Saturday — in a gritty final punctuated by swirling winds due to the open roof — was how Gauff stayed calm while Sabalenka imploded and continually remonstrated with herself. All the screams and shouts were coming from Sabalenka's side of the net, while there was an almost quiet, steely focus on Gauff's side. That's largely because, these days, Gauff gets her frustrations out before matches. 'I know how important it is for me to let out those emotions so that when I come on the match court I can try and be as calm as possible," the No. 2-ranked Gauff said. 'I'm more cool-headed in matches. But in practice I can get pretty upset. Just let me be upset. If I'm upset, I'd rather be upset on the practice court than the match." Gauff will now switch to the grass-court season and may play in Berlin, Germany in a week's time before heading to London for Wimbledon, which starts on May 30. When she gets to London, Gauff will indulge in one of her favorite hobbies: trying to get out of Escape Rooms. 'For sure, I love it, and I'm going to definitely do it,' she said. And how about Sabalenka? How will she be coping with the defeat and the frustrations she so clearly felt? Will she be analyzing footage of the match over and over again, trying to understand where she went wrong and what she must do better? Far from it. She's off to indulge herself in Greece. 'I already have a flight booked to Mykonos and alcohol, sugar. I just need couple of days to completely forget about this crazy world,' Sabalenka said. 'Tequila, gummy bears, and I don't know, swimming, being like the tourist for couple of days.' ___ AP tennis:
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Woodlake High softball caps dream season with CIF SoCal title, plus Corcoran in action
Woodlake High softball coach Ramon Lara had faith in his team that they could have a magical season. With just one loss all season, the second-seeded Tigers were on a mission to make sure that they would not lose another game. Woodlake capped a dream season Saturday with a 4-3 victory over No. 1 Pioneer Valley in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern California Division IV championship. 'Many years of having a good group of girls that work together, and it all came together,' Woodlake coach Ramon Lara said. 'We've had a good core of girls that have played together since they were about 12 ... seventh graders. They're all junior and senior and they've become kind of a family where they know each other really well.' Woodlake scored one run in the top of the seventh inning, which proved to be a decisive win since Pioneer Valley scored a run in the bottom half of the inning. Audrina Rodriguez finished the season 22-0 after pitching a five hitter. The Tigers (30-1) celebrated their SoCal title with 15 pizzas at Mountain Mike's in Pismo Beach. The Tigers' lone loss this season was to South 10-4 at the Woodlake Tournament. Woodlake won the Central Section Division IV title after an 8-1 victory over Coalinga at Margie Wright Diamond on May 31. No. 1-seed Corcoran trailed 4-0 and rallied, scoring a run in the sixth and two runs in the seventh, but lost 4-3 to No. 3 Pioneer-Whittier in the SoCal Division V championship. The Panthers finished the season 27-5 and a Central Section V title after an 18-6 victory over Shafter.

Associated Press
38 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Coco Gauff used words and a mirror to persuade herself she could win the French Open
PARIS (AP) — A little bit of self-persuasion went a very long way for Coco Gauff, whose victory at the French Open gave the 21-year-old American a trophy she has long coveted, and a second major title. Gauff defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 on Saturday to add to her U.S. Open title two years ago. Sabalenka had been the more in-form player heading into the final and Gauff felt she needed some extra motivation. So she drew inspiration from Gabby Thomas, who became the women's Olympic 200-meter champion at last year's Paris Olympics. Thomas had kept writing down that she would be the Olympic champion in her Notes app, so Gauff tried adopting the same approach and grabbed a piece of paper. 'I wrote, 'I will be French Open champion 2025' like a bunch of times,' Gauff explained. 'She (Thomas) wrote 'I will be the Olympic champion' and she ended up winning the gold. I think it's a great mindset that she had.' Eight lines on a piece of paper written by Gauff late on a Friday night, then it was finally time for bed, time to rest. Not quite. Gauff then persuaded herself a little bit more, by staring at the mirror and convincing herself she was looking at the face of a soon-to-be French Open champion. 'Looking at myself in the mirror so I was trying to instil that belief, and obviously it happened. I didn't know if it was going to work or not. (But) it did,' Gauff said, then laughed as she added: 'When you're desperate, you're just trying anything to think that it's going to help you win.' Gauff also posted on Instagram another message she wrote to herself four years ago, which started with the words 'I had a dream last night that I will win (the) French Open.' Job done. What also stood out during the 2 hours and 38 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Saturday — in a gritty final punctuated by swirling winds due to the open roof — was how Gauff stayed calm while Sabalenka imploded and continually remonstrated with herself. All the screams and shouts were coming from Sabalenka's side of the net, while there was an almost quiet, steely focus on Gauff's side. That's largely because, these days, Gauff gets her frustrations out before matches. 'I know how important it is for me to let out those emotions so that when I come on the match court I can try and be as calm as possible,' the No. 2-ranked Gauff said. 'I'm more cool-headed in matches. But in practice I can get pretty upset. Just let me be upset. If I'm upset, I'd rather be upset on the practice court than the match.' Gauff will now switch to the grass-court season and may play in Berlin, Germany in a week's time before heading to London for Wimbledon, which starts on May 30. When she gets to London, Gauff will indulge in one of her favorite hobbies: trying to get out of Escape Rooms. 'For sure, I love it, and I'm going to definitely do it,' she said. And how about Sabalenka? How will she be coping with the defeat and the frustrations she so clearly felt? Will she be analyzing footage of the match over and over again, trying to understand where she went wrong and what she must do better? Far from it. She's off to indulge herself in Greece. 'I already have a flight booked to Mykonos and alcohol, sugar. I just need couple of days to completely forget about this crazy world,' Sabalenka said. 'Tequila, gummy bears, and I don't know, swimming, being like the tourist for couple of days.' ___ AP tennis: