George Hirst held his nerve deep into stoppage time to earn Ipswich Town a scarcely deserved 1-1 draw at Birmingham City, as the Championship season began amid controversy, confrontation and an electric atmosphere at St Andrew's. The Ipswich striker converted a penalty in the fifth minute of added time after Lyndon Dykes was punished for handball, cancelling out Jay Stansfield's second-half opener and silencing a home crowd that had already started to celebrate an impressive victory.
For long spells this felt like a statement night for Birmingham on their return to the second tier. Chris Davies' side, backed by ambitious American owners and fresh from a record-breaking League One campaign, dominated most of the key aspects of the contest and looked to have done enough thanks to Stansfield's emphatic finish. Yet a late corner, a raised arm and a referee's decision transformed the narrative, allowing an under-par Ipswich, relegated from the Premier League last term, to escape with a point from their only shot on target.
St Andrew's Hosts a Ferocious Championship Homecoming
There was a sense of occasion under the lights at St Andrew's as two clubs returned to the Championship from very different starting points. Birmingham romped out of League One last season with a record 111 points and arrived with momentum, a long unbeaten home league run stretching back to April 2024 and a clutch of eye-catching summer signings in their starting XI, including Kyogo Furuhashi. Ipswich, meanwhile, came back down after a bruising Premier League campaign that yielded only four wins, but they too are fancied to challenge near the top of the table.