Why no-one should begrudge Birmingham City's success, why Peterborough United have no chance at Wembley and why there were some positives from last night's defeat

Of course Birmingham City have spent far more money then is usually needed to win promotion from League One, but they probably saw how long it took the likes of Sheffield United, Ipswich Town and Sunderland to escape this division and decided to leave nothing to chance. They built a Championship squad before they reached the Championship which sounds like good planning to me.

They did gamble on a rookie boss in Chris Davies and that paid off as well. Let them enjoy their moment in the sun and stop the carping. No set of fans would complain if their own club were able to bankroll such a dominant season. They have a record that demands respect no matter the circumstances. They’ve won 29 of their 40 League One fixtures and lost just three. They have six games in which to get the nine points which would beat the 103 Wolverhampton Wanderers gained in setting the divisional record.

You could argue you’d expect more flair and obvious attacking quality for the money spent, but maybe we will see that on the wide open expanses of Wembley. Being functional, pragmatic (they hit an awful lot of long balls in the second-half last night) and defensively well organised was enough for this season so warm congratulations to all at St Andrew’s.

TALKING POINTS FROM POSH 1, BIRMINGHAM CITY 2…

1) Last night’s game was a throwback to watching Posh in the Championship. Opponents weren’t always as skilled as the Posh players, but they would inevitably be bigger, physically stronger, better organised and more aggressive. Posh looked exactly what they are last night, young and lightweight in comparison to the best team in the division. Darren Ferguson’s side competed well enough, but they were kept at arm’s length comfortably in the second-half by an experienced outfit who had a novel approach to seeing a game out. They only ‘wasted’ time to kill the game by keeping possession of the ball. That will never catch on.

2) Sadly last night was probably the best chance Posh had of beating Birmingham. Posh fans should treat a trip to Wembley to face the same opponents on Sunday as a jolly, a day trip to London without letting the result of a football match spoil the outing. Birmingham rested some key men from last night’s game and still won at a canter. The Posh team will be weakened by the loss of Sam Hughes. That perfect winning record at Wembley will disappear without doubt barring an act of God. I do though have a terrible track record for football predictions this season. I backed MK Dons to win League Two and backed against Birmingham in League One. I will place a big bet on ‘The Blues’ just to increase the possibility of a jinx.

3) Birmingham’s apparent weakness as they head back into the Championship is a lack of attacking quality out wide. They have shown interest in Kwame Poku in the past apparently and if last night was an audition it went okay for the Posh winger. His goal came courtesy of an instinctive and powerful finish and he attracted the attention of three defenders whenever he received possession out wide. They didn’t always stop him. He disappeared when he moved inside to the 10 position though. Cian Hayes replaced him out wide and wasted a lot of possession. It might have been wiser to leave Poku where he was.

4) Two-tier refereeing is never more obvious than with the harsher punishments given to forwards than defenders when both are making the same challenges. Ricky-Jade Jones is constantly held by defenders fearful of his pace and is awarded very few free kicks. But if he lays a hand on a centre-back you can be guaranteed he will be penalised. There have been many worse referees than last’s man in the middle Ben Toner at the Weston Homes Stadium though.

5) Left-back Harley Mills seems a more reliable performer than any of the Posh right-backs at the club. He defends well, he stops crosses and he is a neat passer of the ball with a wicked set-piece delivery. I wonder if Tayo Edun’s temperament problems will lean Posh towards retaining Rio Adebisi and Mills as left-backs next season.

6) It wasn’t a bad night for Posh as far as results elsewhere were concerned. If they lost Posh were always going to drop a place as Exeter City and Wigan Athletic were playing each other at St James Park so the 1-1 draw was an ideal result. The Grecians swapped places with Posh who are now 16th, nine points and five places above the relegation zone. Mansfield Town’s 3-2 defeat at home to Leyton Orient meant they stayed a point and a place behind Posh. Wigan are a further point back, but with a game in hand.