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By NEIL MOXLEY
Decider: Dean Whitehead wheels away in delight after scrambling home Stoke's winner late onTony Pulis has bemoaned his luck with referees in recent weeks but the Stoke manager had just cause to toast Mark Clattenburg on Tuesday night.
Pulis has been on the wrong end of several decisions this season but Tyneside official Clattenburg went some way to redress the balance on a night of vastly contrasting emotions.
Alex McLeish's Birmingham side had looked down and out as they chased a two-goal deficit going into the final quarter of the game, only for strikes by substitute Keith Fahey and Cameron Jerome to put them within sight of an unlikely point.
But then Dean Whitehead burst forward to fire a controversial winning goal. The midfielder clearly handled the ball, as he chased Ricardo Fuller's knock-down and Birmingham's defenders dithered as they appealed for the infringement.
Whitehead continued his run and lifted the ball over Birmingham goalkeeper Ben Foster after it had bounced into his path off Scott Dann, ending Stoke's four-match run of defeats.
Stunner: Ricardo Fuller curls in a brilliant effort to put Stoke 2-0 up early in the second halfPulis promoted relegation for poor officials in the build-up. But he failed to spot any problem with the winning goal.
'I didn't see it,' he said. 'Not at all. I'm being serious. I have to say that I thought Mark was very good. If he didn't see that, then we are very pleased.'
Stoke had bossed the first half and Birmingham had not looked comfortable as the home side showed no hint of nervousness despite their lowly league position.
It was only a combination of desperate last-gasp defending and two superb stops from Foster that had kept the visitors in it.
However, Foster could do little with the opening goal. Fuller's shot was halfblocked by Barry Ferguson and defender Robert Huth drilled home.
Volley good: Moments after Fuller's goal, Keith Fahey produces another fantastic strike to get Birmingham back in the gameIncredibly, Huth saw another header blocked on the goal-line by Fuller and Foster also pulled off a superb block to deny Rory Delap. Pulis's frustration was clear as he threw his water bottle on to the floor.
Birmingham had been desperately poor in the opening half but it was a different story after the break. Moments before Fuller added a second, Danny Higginbotham hacked the ball wildly against his own post.
But from a Birmingham corner, Stoke broke superbly. Fuller was chased by Ferguson as he collected the ball on the right. He cut inside before curling a superb shot into the corner.
Level pegging: Cameron Jerome celebrates after scoring Birmingham's second goal to bring the scores level
That appeared to be that. Not so. McLeish threw on Keith Fahey for the ineffective Jean Beausejour and the Ireland international responded by firing a superb shot into the bottom corner of Asmir Begovic's net. Three minutes later, Birmingham were level. Seb Larsson's cross was deftly glanced past Begovic and the Britannia Stadium, which had been jumping five minutes earlier, was suddenly nervous.
Craig Gardner burst forward and forced Begovic to tip the ball over the bar but the good fortune that Pulis had been seeking arrived when the ball arrived at Whitehead's feet.
McLeish said: 'It was a bittersweet evening. We never really got going in the first half. They unnerved us. Our passing was all over the place.
'Then, after about 60 minutes we looked a different team. But we are where we are because we are giving away too many goals. We have had some decisions not go for us and we are giving away sloppy goals.
'We got away with it last season but we aren't going to go anywhere unless we cut out the silliness at the back.'
One up: Robert Huth raises his arms aloft after giving Stoke a first half leadsource: dailymail [endtext]
