Illness Robs Youngster Of First Start

Robert Hall Should have got his first start for Birmingham at Blackpool on Tuesday, but an illness robbed him of his chance.

The youngster who is on loan from West Ham United had impressed manager Lee Clark when he appeared for a short spell in the defeat at Derby County and his reward for his efforts would have been a starting birth at Bloomfield Road.

But speaking to the club’s official website, Clark revealed: ‘When we were in the hotel talking about the game, watching footage and talking through the tactics, Robert Hall became ill in the meeting.

‘We had to stop the meeting halfway through when he was ill, sent him to bed and tried to get a bit of food into him. That didn’t work, it didn’t stay down.

‘His 35 minutes on Saturday were excellent. He was going to start, in that system he would have been excellent for us with his pace, his directness and his penetration.’