THE appointment of Neil Lennon had certainly given the fans a boost as eight coachloads gathered at the Macron for the trip to Birmingham.

Heathcotes joined in the general feelgood mood by offering pre-away trip deals of coffee and bacon rolls, especially welcome for those in good spirits from the Bolton Beer Festival.

The feeling was that Dougie Freedman had done a lot of the dirty work necessary to get the club moving back in the right direction but you cannot ignore results.

The coaches could not have got nearer to the away turnstiles if they had tried as they pulled into St Andrew’s.

The mood was cautiously optimistic and Neil Lennon did not spring any surprises with his team selection, concentrating on playing players in their position, while he has a look at the squad he has inherited.

The exception was Chung-Yong Lee who played in the centre and was a revelation.

The football wasn’t brilliant but there was a determination in the play which saw us through.

Everyone played their part, superbly led by Jay Spearing and Matt Mills. Andy Lonergan produced two fantastic saves when needed.

The only downside to the magnificent support we had was that we overwhelmed the refreshment bars at half-time.

Some fans missed out on a 20-1 betting certainty of Neil Lennon being sent to the stands.

We’re not expecting miracles. Most fans would settle for Championship stability this year and a big push next season.

There is a lot of room for improvement and a lot of work to be done.

It’s going to be a long and winding road before we get back to where we want to be. But help has arrived and we can imagine a better future.

Style, Passion and Performance is our motto and the initial impression is that our passion is back.

Hopefully the style and performance will come as our fragile confidence is restored.