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The Independent
13-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Darren Ferguson toasts record-breaking Peterborough after EFL Trophy success
Darren Ferguson toasted his record-breaking Peterborough team after an inspired display by teenager Harley Mills helped them register a shock 2-0 victory over Birmingham in the Vertu Trophy final at Wembley. The all-conquering Blues had sealed promotion from Sky Bet League One with an away win at Posh on Tuesday before they clinched the title on Saturday – after Wrexham dropped points – but they were stunned by two former Aston Villa players in London. Firstly, ex-Villa trainee Mills struck a wonderful free-kick in the 15th minute before his cross led to a superb second from Hector Kyprianou on the stroke of half-time, and one-time Villa goalkeeper Jed Steer then stood strong amid a Birmingham onslaught during the final exchanges. Peterborough navigated 11 minutes of stoppage-time to become the first club to win this tournament back-to-back and Ferguson – who lifted silverware for a fourth time at Posh – celebrated being the first manager to win the English Football League Trophy on three occasions. 'Yeah, we've made a bit of history. We knew we had to give a really top performance and I felt the players did that,' Ferguson told Sky Sports. 'Birmingham are a top team. They are one of the best teams that League One has seen and you have to congratulate them, they've won the league but today was our day. 'Maybe Tuesday was a good game for us because they didn't blow us, which they've done to many teams but we were well in the game and I think the lads took belief from that. 'We just said we've got to turn up and be the best version of us. Today we were.' Ferguson was also relieved 19-year-old Mills was stubborn enough to take the early free-kick. He added: 'Kwame (Poku) wanted to take it and I was screaming, 'let Harley take it', because he's fantastic at free-kicks. His deliveries are on the money all the time and fantastic. 'No, it wasn't my decision. Kwame is good at many things, but not that. 'For the kid (Harley), he's come through the academy, scored at Wembley, a fantastic day for the boy.' Birmingham were left to lick their wounds, 24 hours after the League One title had been sealed, but boss Chris Davies vowed they would grow from defeat at Wembley. 'It wasn't our best day. It was obviously Peterborough's day, so firstly congratulates to Peterborough,' Davies said. 'Suffering is part of life, part of football and you have to feel it, take your medicine, grow from it and learn from it. 'We're suffering because we've come to Wembley with all our fans and lost and that's going to hurt obviously, but we do have to grow from it and we will do.'
The Independent
13-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Teenager Harley Mills inspires Peterborough to EFL Trophy win over Birmingham
A brilliant individual display by teenager Harley Mills inspired Peterborough and boss Darren Ferguson to more Vertu Trophy success with a shock 2-0 victory over Birmingham at Wembley. The all-conquering Blues had sealed promotion from Sky Bet League One with a win away to Posh on Tuesday before they clinched the title on Saturday after Wrexham dropped points. It meant a party atmosphere greeted Birmingham at Wembley, but they were stunned after 19-year-old left-back Mills struck a wonderful free-kick in the 15th minute before Hector Kyprianou's stunner on the stroke of half-time ensured Peterborough defended their title on a record-breaking occasion. Posh, who are 16th in League One, became the first team to win this tournament back-to-back and Ferguson – who lifted silverware for a fourth time at the club – celebrated being the first manager to win the English Football League Trophy on three occasions. Wembley was host to several stars with Birmingham co-owner Tom Brady rubbing shoulders with Peterborough's larger-than-life director of football Barry Fry, who managed the Blues during the 1990s. A raft of changes were made by both managers following a close battle on Tuesday night, but Chris Davies made only five, while counterpart Ferguson made seven alterations to his team. Davies did recall 23-goal hitman Jay Stansfield and he went close early on before Kwame Poku won Peterborough a free-kick in a dangerous position. Mills, who had started the campaign on loan at National League South club Enfield, stood over the set-piece and produced a sensational left-footed strike into the top corner to send the Posh fans into delirium after quarter of an hour. Birmingham responded strongly with penalty appeals for Ethan Laird waved away and Mills made a crucial block to deny Kieran Dowell, minutes before half-time. It would prove crucial as with seconds of the first-half left, Peterborough went 2-0 up through captain Kyprianou. Mills was again involved as his dangerous cross was flicked on by Ricky-Jade Jones and Kyprianou was on hand to rifle the ball into the top corner from 20 yards. Kyprianou celebrated in front of the silenced Birmingham supporters, but Davies reacted at the break with Alfie May introduced. Stansfield had Blues' first shot on target saved by Jed Steer soon after, before Laird had another spot-kick appeal ignored when he grappled with Kyprianou. Steer was alert again to thwart a free-kick by Dowell before Stansfield did have the ball in the net with six minutes left, but it was ruled out for offside. The Birmingham faithful received a lift when 11 minutes of stoppage-time was added on and Lukas Jutkiewicz was introduced to big applause. But Steer saved his volley to ensure the day belonged to Peterborough and Ferguson, who upset the odds to savour another memorable Wembley triumph.
New York Times
08-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Birmingham City and Tom Brady are promoted – but this is just the start
Rubbish is piling up in the streets of Birmingham. An industrial dispute with refuse collectors has led to weeks of uncollected waste and rats running amok in England's second biggest metropolis. The football team carrying the city name, however, are embarking on a clean sweep. Tonight, Birmingham City — the club owned by the American investment firm Knighthead and counts Tom Brady among its minority shareholders — sealed promotion from England's third tier into the Championship, one rung below the Premier League, thanks to 2-1 win over Peterborough United. Advertisement That achievement has felt inevitable for months. But this could just be the start of a golden month: Birmingham now plan to wave goodbye to League One as champions and record-breakers under talented young head coach Chris Davies. Three wins from their remaining six league games would see them eclipse Wolverhampton Wanderers' 103 points from the 2013-14 season, the highest achieved in League One. And that's not all. On Sunday, Birmingham could add the English Football League Trophy — the knockout competition contested by teams in League One and League Two, plus academy sides from the Premier League — to this season's honours. More than 43,000 fans will be backing the club at Wembley Stadium for the game, a rematch against Peterborough. Battered and bruised by the mismanagement of previous years and the embarrassment of relegation last season, it has been some recovery — although this does not qualify as a sporting fairy tale. Anything other than automatic promotion would have pointed to deeper problems, given the £25million-plus investment on players who many observers believe would have formed a competitive squad in the Championship. The involvement of Brady also ensured that Birmingham received a level of publicity that only Wrexham, owned by Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, can match. The former NFL quarterback has no day-to-day involvement in the club and holds a 3.3 per cent stake with no voting rights. He is the chairman of an advisory board, working with Birmingham's directors and leadership team. The club have also said that he offers assistance to the sports science department on health, nutrition and recovery programmes, with players using Brady's body coach, Alex Guerrero. Brady has visited St Andrew's just once this season — for the game against Wrexham, naturally — but when he did, he brought his friend David Beckham along with him, turning St Andrew's VIP seats into English football's hottest ticket. Birmingham have won few friends among their League One peers this season. Not only did they swipe players from rival clubs — Alfie May from Charlton Athletic was a prominent case — they also distorted the market by paying huge salaries. Advertisement Birmingham have gone about their business with a swagger bordering on arrogance all campaign. At the end of September, captain Krystian Bielik told the BBC: 'We're League One but I don't think there are any players in this team who are League One players. In six months, we'll be a Championship team and a different animal.' The fact that Bielik has been proven right has not made his comments any more palatable to other League One clubs, although nobody is disputing Birmingham's quality was a level above the rest of the division, even Wrexham. Finding a way to win so consistently — shutting out all the external noise and creating a siege mentality — was also hugely impressive. For large parts of the season, nothing mattered more than preparing well and grinding out victories, albeit through a slender margin. In more recent weeks, Davies, 40, has opened up his side and the goals have flowed; six were smashed past Barnsley on Saturday and four against Shrewsbury Town a week earlier at St Andrew's, which has become a fortress this season. They have not lost a home game in the league all season. The manner in which they sealed promotion at Peterborough tonight was typical of their approach. First-half goals from May and Taylor Gardner-Hickman gave Birmingham a 2-1 win and the chants of 'we are going up' from the 4,000 travelling away fans started as early as the 19th minute. It was party atmosphere throughout, with wild scenes on the final whistle. The promotion celebrations will continue into the summer, not so much to mark what has been achieved but what could follow next season. Birmingham believe they have already laid the groundwork to target another promotion next season with a core of the squad — Christoph Klarer, Ethan Laird, Paik Seung-ho, and Jay Stansfield, their record £15m signing ($19.2m) — all capable of making the step up. The on-loan Rangers pair Ben Davies and Kieran Dowell also have the experience and know-how to thrive in the setup if permanent deals can be agreed. The FA Cup tie against Premier League Newcastle United in January, which ended in a narrow 3-2 defeat, hinted at Birmingham's potential. Advertisement Either way, the partnerships that have already been struck and the increased revenues they should generate will allow Birmingham to continue spending in the transfer window. Once again, the recruitment drive will be aggressive, as it has to be if Birmingham are to fulfil Knighthead co-founder Tom Wagner's prediction that they have the potential to be a top 10 Premier League team. With phase one complete, Davies will not let his players slack off in pursuit of an all-conquering season. If that clean sweep does follow, then it will be down to his relentless approach and how his motivational skills achieved full buy-in from the group. To achieve promotion with six games remaining is rare. It highlights how Birmingham, as the biggest-ever spenders in the third tier, were always a mismatch for League One. Next season will pose a sterner test but nobody at St Andrew's is feeling daunted.
Al Arabiya
12-02-2025
- Automotive
- Al Arabiya
Wrexham says one of its players hospitalized after road incident on way home from match
Wrexham midfielder Elliot Lee was taken to the hospital after being involved in what the Welsh club described as a road traffic incident on the way home from a match, the team said Wednesday. Lee, one of Wrexham's top players, suffered no major injuries in the incident, which took place after a 1–0 home win over Bolton in the quarterfinals of the English Football League Trophy on Tuesday. The incident involved one other car and resulted in the drivers of both cars being taken to the hospital, Wrexham said in a statement. 'Emergency services were quickly on the scene, and the club would like to thank them for their prompt response and action.' Wrexham said the driver of the other vehicle is being treated for their injuries and would not be making any further comment. Lee, the son of former Newcastle and England midfielder Rob Lee, is playing a key role in Wrexham's bid for a third promotion since being taken over by Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021 and becoming the subject of a TV documentary, 'Welcome to Wrexham.' The team is currently in third place in the third-tier League One.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Wrexham says one of its players hospitalized after road incident on way home from match
WREXHAM, Wales (AP) — Wrexham midfielder Elliot Lee was taken to the hospital after being involved in what the Welsh club described as a 'road traffic incident' on the way home from a match, the team said Wednesday. Lee, one of Wrexham's top players, 'suffered no major injuries' in the incident, which took place after a 1-0 home win over Bolton in the quarterfinals of the English Football League Trophy on Tuesday. 'The incident involved one other car and resulted in the drivers of both cars being taken to hospital,' Wrexham said in a statement. 'Emergency services were quickly on the scene and the club would like to thank them for their prompt response and action.' Wrexham said the driver of the other vehicle 'is being treated for their injuries' and would not be making any further comment. Lee, the son of former Newcastle and England midfielder Rob Lee, is playing a key role in Wrexham's bid for a third promotion since being taken over by Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021 and becoming the subject of a TV documentary, 'Welcome to Wrexham.' The team is currently in third place in the third-tier League One. ___ AP soccer: The Associated Press
