Michael O’Neill solely focused on boosting Blackburn beyond 50-point mark

Michael O’Neill reiterated that everyone at Blackburn remains concentrated on bypassing the 50-point mark after they returned to action with a 1-0 Sky Bet Championship win over Birmingham at St Andrew’s on Good Friday.

Blackburn won the match with the only goal of the afternoon courtesy of captain Todd Cantwell with a little over 20 minutes remaining in the match to secure three precious points and move Rovers six points clear of the relegation zone.

O’Neill, who only returned from managerial duties with Northern Ireland on Wednesday, paid tribute to first-team staff Damien Johnson and Phil Jones who held the fort in his absence and he commended his side for kicking off their Easter schedule with a victory.

“I’m exhausted! We put everything into the game,” O’Neill said. “We said to the players about the attitude through the game… we had to show we wanted it more than the opposition.

“It’s a moment of quality from Todd to win the game and a massive three points for us.

“It’s a better position than we were in before the start of the game. I don’t think we’ll make statements at this time, but the most important thing is to get to 50 points and above.

“There was an opportunity to come out of here today with 46 points and that’s what we’ve managed to do. They should be immensely proud of their efforts. We go into a home game against West Brom on Monday in a good place. Our away form has been good and we have to take this into the game at Ewood.”

Of the time spent away from the club, as he sought in vain to guide Northern Ireland to the World Cup this summer, O’Neill added: “The week was tough with the internationals. You’re coming out of one game and suddenly you’re rolling yourself in and preparing for the next game. The team today was as well prepared as any since I’ve been here and that is down to the staff.”

For Birmingham, meanwhile, their campaign is very much at risk of fizzling out; while it was only their third defeat on home soil this season, they have now lost five of their last seven league matches and home supporters voiced their dissatisfaction in the closing stages of this defeat – an emotion manager Chris Davies acknowledged post-match.

“It’s another game where we haven’t done enough to win it. Offensively, we’re not playing with real confidence and rhythm in our game,” he said.

“Defensively we looked vulnerable. When you’re not firing, you have to be defensively super solid, especially in the last 20 minutes of a home game. It’s a very painful defeat. There wasn’t a lot in the match, it was a typical Championship match but over the piece we haven’t shown enough quality.

“They defended in numbers, we couldn’t find the spaces. Half a yard here and half a yard there, it’s a different story but that is football for you. The players are trying.

“The fans here have been generally fantastic for me. The frustration they show and feel is exactly the same as how I feel. It’s horrible to lose at home. It’s my job to keep us together, there is no need for us to be fractured.

“It’s my responsibility – I pick the team, prepare the team and ultimately it comes down to me. I thank the fans, they tried to get us going, but we haven’t done enough to give them something to cheer about.”