Latest news with #EthanLaird
BBC News
01-08-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'Let them try' - Laird happy Birmingham are targets
"Let them try. It's something that's always going to happen when a club has a buzz about them."Ethan Laird was in bullish mood - buzzing, even - as he looked forward to the start of the Championship season and the prospect of Birmingham City strutting their stuff in a week's time with large metaphorical targets on their there is a strut to Blues - a justified one - given the way they swept to the League One title last season in a record-breaking cruise with 34 wins and 111 targets will be there because of not only what the players have done on the pitch, but what the club are doing off rich owners Knighthead are bankrolling a charge to the Premier League along with a regeneration of the city's sporting are not messing about. Premier League ambitions As a result, the club's profile has gone through the roof and will only be pumped higher by their Amazon Prime documentary series, fronted by NFL legend and minority investor Tom Brady, which airs on is hard to think of a Championship club that has demanded more eyeballs on them in recent years. Defender Laird, who is used to life in the goldfish bowl of scrutiny having come through the youth system to play for Manchester United, says the chatter around Blues is understandable."I believe there's a difference between hype and buzz," he told BBC Midlands Today."Hype is around clubs where things could happen, buzz is because something is actually happening."And that why other clubs and fans are saying things - but that's part of football and we love it."When Sir Alex Ferguson took over success-starved Manchester United in 1986, he said knocking dominant rivals Liverpool "off their perch" was his ultimate driving force. Although Birmingham's perch is not as lofty as the Reds' was then, or now, Laird understands their league rivals will echo Ferguson's sentiment. "It's almost like fuel for us," he said."Because what Birmingham is made out of is a lot of heart and when we go out on to the pitch, it's 100% pedal to the metal."To be honest, it's not going to affect us because it's opinions and opinions are thrown everywhere - someone says something good and someone says something bad. "We all have a goal here. We want to be in the Premier League. "It's a matter of when, not if, and we're all driven - we're all wishing to be there and we're all working hard to be there." 'We want an amazing season' A return to the top flight is the number one priority of chairman Tom Wagner and one player in the Blues ranks who is arguably the posterboy of that ambition is striker Jay broke the League One transfer record to sign the England Under-21 international from Fulham and he repaid that faith by spearheading their promotion with 19 who scored 12 times during a season-long loan from the Cottagers when Blues were relegated from the Championship two years ago, says having such ambitious owners is an inspiration."Every young footballer wants to be a Premier League footballer so to be in a club where the owner's really ambitious to do that is special," Stansfield said."It gives us that extra drive to get to where they want to be."As players you want to do your best for them - they've backed you and showed faith and you want to give that back to them and the fans by giving them an amazing season."That campaign starts next Friday when they host the last team to go back-to-back from League One to the Premier League, Ipswich Town."Hopefully we'll be up there but, we've said many times, we're not getting ahead of ourselves," Stansfield added."Last season wasn't easy. We came though it in the end and did very well."But the season before we were relegated - the Championship's very hard, there are some very good teams coming down from the Premier League."It'll be a good benchmark to see whether we can challenge the best teams."
RTÉ News
30-04-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Birmingham set all-time English Football League points record
Boss Chris Davies described League One champions Birmingham's new EFL points total record as "truly special" after a 2-0 win over Blackpool at Bloomfield Road. Ethan Laird's first-half goal and Alfie May's second – six minutes after half-time – earned Birmingham victory, taking them onto 108 points, bettering Reading's previous best of 106 in their 2005-06 title-winning Championship. They could now finish with a staggering 111 points should they take maximum points at relegated Cambridge on Saturday. "I have spoken to the players about the legacy we could leave this season and the mark we could make in the footballing world," said Davies after his side's 33rd League One success. "I have been drumming it into them, to chase a record like this isn't a club record, not something that people will brush over. Everyone will know in the next 24 hours what we have done. "To achieve 108 points is truly special and a remarkable achievement. I said to the players just make sure you sit back, think about, reflect and understand what it takes to do that. "Think how many football teams there have been, how many seasons there have been. And we are the team that have got the most points in the history of English football. "I am so proud of them all. Not only have we broken the record but we have achieved it by having to play, I believe, more games in England or Scotland than anyone else. "We will have played 60 games so it is not as though we have turned up fresh for every game. "To achieve what we have tonight and to finish the season with that level of points is something I will really savour." Blackpool boss and former Blues manager Steve Bruce paid his own tribute to the record breakers. "Overall, there was a gulf. They have got far better players all over the pitch than most of us have got. "You could see why they had won the league by 20 odd points. "They are well organised, well coached, well disciplined. I predicted it five or six months ago they would win by 20 points and they have got record totals. "They remind me of the really good Wolves side that was in the Championship a few years ago. "Congratulations to Birmingham. It is a club I have a big fondness for. They are an excellent football team and we found it very difficult. "In the first half, in particular, we didn't make it very difficult for them. In the second we made a mistake but were better."
New York Times
30-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Birmingham City break EFL points record with win over Blackpool
Birmingham City have broken the English Football League (EFL) points record with a win over Blackpool on Wednesday, taking their League One total to 108 with one game remaining. The previous record was held by Reading, who won the Championship with 106 points in the 2006-07 campaign. Goals from Ethan Laird and Alfie May gave Birmingham a 2-0 win over ninth-placed Blackpool. Advertisement Birmingham's 4-0 win over Mansfield Town on Sunday also saw them break the League One record of 103 points set by Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2013-14. They secured promotion back to the Championship at the first time of asking on April 8 and were crowned champions four days later after Wrexham failed to beat Wigan Athletic. Manager Chris Davies told BBC Radio WM before the Blackpool game that he does not think his side's League One points tally 'will ever be beaten'. Birmingham were acquired by American investment firm Knighthead in July 2023, with NFL great Tom Brady on board as a minority shareholder. The club were relegated from the Championship last season after finishing 22nd, having had four managers during the 2023-24 season. Davies was appointed manager in June 2024, leaving his role as senior assistant coach under Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur. Birmingham were active in the summer transfer window, bringing in 17 new players including Jay Stansfield from Fulham for a League One record fee of at least £15million ($20m). The 22-year-old is second in the league's scoring charts with 19 goals behind Leyton Orient's Charlie Kelman, who has 21. Davies' side have scored the most goals and conceded the least in the league this season, losing only three of their 45 games. They visit Cambridge United on the final day of the EFL regular season on Saturday. Wrexham will join Birmingham in the second tier next season, having achieved promotion with 3-0 win over Charlton Athletic on April 26. Fifth-placed Charlton have secured a play-off spot, alongside fourth-placed Wycombe Wanderers and Stockport County in third. Leyton Orient currently occupy the final play-off slot in sixth though they are level on points with Reading, one place behind, ahead of the final round.
BBC News
30-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Birmingham beat Blackpool to break EFL points record
League One champions Birmingham City broke the Football League record for most points in a season with a comfortable 2-0 victory at from Ethan Laird and Alfie May ensured Blues moved on to 108 points for the campaign and beat Reading's 2005-06 Championship haul of 106 with a game to who had surpassed Wolves' record third-tier tally of 103 last weekend, can finish the season on 111 points with a win at relegated Cambridge United in their final match on Saturday. More to follow.
The Sun
30-04-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Tom Brady's Birmingham break all-time EFL points record in just second season in charge of League One champions
BIRMINGHAM CITY have smashed the record for the most points scored in a single EFL campaign. The club's 2-0 win over Blackpool on Wednesday evening took their overall points total up to 108 - two more than the record previously set by Reading (106) in the 2005-06 Championship season. 1 Ethan Laird broke the deadlock in the 39th minute before striker Alfie May secured the win at the start of the second half. Birmingham, co-owned by NFL legend Tom Brady, still have one more game left to play - against Cambridge United. The Blues were promoted back to the Championship earlier this month and clinched the League One title just days later. They have lost just three games all season and now remain 19 points clear of second-placed Wrexham. After lifting the trophy on home soil at St Andrew's last week, manager Chris Davies said: "It's an incredible achievement. "I really have to reiterate that. I don't want people to start taking this for granted and thinking that we just won another game. "We just got the most points any team in the history of English football have got in this league. "It's an incredible achievement of how consistent the players have been, with all the ups and downs you have through a season, and injuries and everything else. "They've done exceptionally well, so it's an achievement that will be hard to match, 105 points in a season and I'm very, very proud of everyone. "We're unbeaten in the league at home, so I wanted to finish strong today. We scored some good goals, it was a dominant performance - a really good way to finish." THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY..
