BIRMINGHAM City boss Trevor Francis was gracious in defeat and took time out to congratulate Bury on their inspirational performance on Wednesday night.

He had special praise for 'keeper Dean Kiely, whose heroics denied the Midlands' side on a host of occasions.

"Bury played with more determination than us and they had the pest player on the field in Kiely," he said.

"They also displayed some finishing of the highest quality.

"We needed to pull a goal back before half-time if we were going to get back in it. Mark Patterson's brilliant chip in the second half made it very difficult for us from then on."

Francis, whose decision to rest former Manchester United captain Steve Bruce looked to have backfired, added: "This result will be a major surprise, none more so than to ourselves. I can't say we were unlucky because Bury deserved to win.

"Too many of our players who have been in good form recently were well below par."

Goal hero Tony Rigby was thrilled with his strike and the three points.

He said: "That was probably our best performance of the season. The goal was something I have done a couple of times - you just have to hit it as hard as you can.

"There were some great performances out there. Kiely was incredible and Mark Patterson's goal was a different class."

He added: "To move out of the relegation zone gives the whole team a psychological boost. Saturday's game with Swindon is a big one for us now. We have to do the same thing again if possible."

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