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Birmingham 1 Aston Villa 1: Collins makes his point to hand boss Houllier a lifeline

By Neil Moxley Updated: 17:37 EDT, 16 January 2011

With riot police surrounding the pitch and flares being released by both sets of fans, it was easy to overlook that this match may be remembered as more than just the latest raucous instalment in a bitter local rivalry.

But if Gerard Houllier is ultimately successful in his attempts to revive Aston Villa, James Collins' 73rd-minute equaliser could go down as the start. Strike it lucky: Collins gave Villa the equaliser as his shot sailed in following deflection off of Liam Ridgewell

Few would deny that Villa deserved at least a draw from a game in which they created chances at regular intervals.

But before the defender's deflected strike, Houllier's lamentable sequence of results since taking over was threatening to plummet to a new low.

Buoyed by Roger Johnson's goal four minutes into the second half, the home crowd were singing 'You're getting sacked in the morning' at the Frenchman, while Alex McLeish was dreaming of his first derby triumph in five Premier League attempts. Derby blues: Roger Johnson is mobbed by his Birmingham team-mates after scoring the opening goal of the game against rivals Aston Villa

Defeat here might not have been a terminal blow for Houllier but, coming just a month after the Carling Cup quarter-final loss to Birmingham and with his side now locked into a relegation struggle, he would have faced fresh howls of protest from a deeply disgruntled support.

'We would have been very disappointed had we not got something from the game,' said Houllier. 'My team did well, they created chances away from home, we hit the bar several times. The draw was the minimum we deserved.'

McLeish, who enjoyed a promising debut from David Bentley, was left to rue Birmingham's apparent inability to be awarded a penalty. Welcome to Birmingham: Villa's Nigel Reo-Coker gets stuck into Blues new boy David Bentley

McLeish's side are still waiting for their first league spot-kick of the season and Mark Clattenburg rejected appeals when Kyle Walker appeared to handle Craig Gardner's cross and David Murphy fell over under Marc Albrighton's challenge.

'I don't even try and claim for them any more,' said an increasingly irritated McLeish. 'I've got to be dignified but I've seen them given against us.'

The heavy police presence was a legacy of the serious trouble when the teams met last month. But the reduced allocation for Villa fans - 1,500 tickets - and increased segregation did not fully explain the lowest attendance for a Premier League clash between the teams. Rough ride: Former Villa midfielder Craig Gardner gets to grips with on-loan full-back Kyle Walker (R)

'A lot of people haven't been paid since Christmas yet and it's on television as well,' said McLeish. 'It's been a tough couple of years recession-wise. It's possibly too early as well. Twelve o'clock kick-off. Possibly a few of our supporters had a bevvy last night and were still struggling with the odd hangover.'

McLeish's team began the game as if they'd had a heavy Saturday night themselves and both Gabby Agbonlahor (twice) and Stewart Downing could have given Villa the lead in the opening phase of the game.

But the home side, who are only a point better off than Villa although with a game in hand, steadied themselves and were rewarded for a spell of dominance by Johnson's opener - an emphatic, right-foot finish. They could have sealed victory after that, but Matt Derbyshire and then Gardner spurned chances, allowing Collins to rescue Villa via a vital deflection from Liam Ridgewell.

Both sides had late opportunites. Derbyshire's flick at the near post appeared to strike Richard Dunne's arm and at the other end substitute Nathan Delfouneso sprinted clear of Ridgewell but saw his drive tipped on to the bar by Foster.

For McLeish - still awaiting responses from transfer targets Robbie Keane and Kenny Miller - it was a question of looking at the bigger picture.

'We have come a long way in terms of results against Villa,' he said. That may be true, but it was difficult to argue that honour wasn't satisfied for both halves of Birmingham after this. Share of the spoils: Aston Villa boss Gerard Houllier was a relieved man after his side earned a draw against Alex McLeish's men






Birmingham 1 Aston Villa 1: Collins makes his point to hand Houllier a lifeline





