The Blues returned to winning ways with a comfortable 4-0 victory over Millwall at the Den, their biggest win of the season. After the Lions had made a strong start, Nathan Broadhead netted the opener for the Blues with a header on 24, then a Wes Harding own goal made it 2-0 eight minutes later, Kieffer Moore made it 3-0 in first-half injury time and sub Ali Al-Hamadi netted the fourth from the spot, his first goal for the club in the dying moments of the second half.

Town boss Kieran McKenna, who was taking charge of the Blues for the 100th time in the league, made two changes with Cameron Burgess and Omari Hutchinson coming into the team and Conor Chaplin, for the first time in the Championship this season, and George Edmundson dropping out.

Burgess joined Luke Woolfenden at the heart of the defence with Edmundson left out of the 20-man squad and rested having played every game this year so far.

Hutchinson came into the three behind central striker Kieffer Moore along with Wes Burns on the right and Nathan Broadhead on the left.

Millwall handed starts to George Saville, Murray Wallace, Tom Bradshaw and Ryan Leonard with Joe Bryan out serving the first of a three-match ban handed out for violent conduct in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at Coventry and on-loan Burnley striker Michael Obefemi was ill. Former Town keeper Bartosz Bialkowski was named among their subs.

The Lions struck the first shot of the game in the second minute. Leonard slamming Saville’s corner from the left over the bar after it had been played to him five yards outside the area.

Two minutes later, Hladky was forced to pat away a Saville shot which came through a crowd of players.

On 10, after a Town free-kick, Millwall broke through Bradshaw, but Harry Clarke did well to get back.

Moments later, a free-kick from the right was half-cleared to Leonard on the edge of the box and his powerful low shot was well saved by Hladky.

Millwall continued to look the more dangerous side and on 13 Hladky saved sharply at his right post from a Zian Flemming free-kick just outside the area to the left.

The Lions had started strongly, but the Blues began to take over as the game moved beyond the quarter-hour, shortly after many of the team received instruction from McKenna and his staff while Hutchinson was receiving treatment for a knock.

On 20, Leif Davis played a low free-kick to Broadhead on the penalty spot from the right and the Wales international swept a shot which clipped the bar on the way over, via a Millwall foot, the Town forward claimed, but referee Sam Barrott felt otherwise.

The Blues had begun to look the most likely scorers and in the 24th minute, they went in front. Following a corner needlessly conceded after Matija Sarkic, Wallace and skipper Jake Cooper failed to communicate, Hutchinson clipped the ball back in from the angle of the area on the right and Broadhead allowed the ball flick off the top of his head and into the far corner of the net, the Welshman’s 10th goal of the season.

Eight minutes later, it was 2-0. Broadhead was sent away down the left by Burgess and his cross was diverted into his own goal by Wes Harding, prompting boos from the sparse home support.

On 34, Town, who had been dominant since the first goal, might have made it 3-0 when Moore seized on an error by Harding midway inside the Millwall half but the defender did well to get back to slide in to take it away from the on-loan AFC Bournemouth man as he looked to shoot from the edge of the box.

The Blues continued to dominate and moments after the fourth official indicated four additional minutes, Clarke exchanged a one-two with Hutchinson on the right of the box, took it to the byline and stood up a cross for Moore, who headed his 50th Championship goal and his third for Town into the ground and into the top corner of the net.

The final whistle was greeted by loud boos from the home support, those that hadn’t already made their way to the bars.

Millwall had started strongly, as has often been the case of late, but Town took over around the 15-minute mark and dominated from there, making the most of numerous Lions errors as they grabbed their three well-taken goals.

The Lions, 3-0 down at half-time as they had been at Portman Road in November, made a change ahead of the second period, Casper De Norre replacing Harding.

Millwall were first to threaten after restart, Flemming hitting a low shot across the face and wide having caught Clarke on the way. The resultant corner came to nothing.

Town had been comfortable without threatening to score a fourth, then on 59 Davis was booked for a foul on Romain Esse.

Following the free-kick, Bradshaw flicked a cross from the right at goal, but too close to Hladky, who claimed. Seconds later, Millwall’s Danny McNamara joined Davis in the book for a foul on Broadhead.

Town continued to dominate, passing the ball around confidently with Millwall chasing shadows.

On 67, Hutchinson, who had had an impressive game in the central role, and Broadhead, having scored his second goal in two games following his eight-game drought, were replaced by Chaplin and Jeremy Sarmiento.

Four minutes later, Millwall swapped Bradshaw, Esse and George Honeyman for Billy Mitchell, Duncan Watmore and Adam Mayor.

Town made two more changes in the 75th minute, Ali Al-Hamadi and Lewis Travis replacing Moore and Luongo.

The Blues forced Sarkic into the first save of the half in the 79th minute. A Burns cross from the right was poorly defended straight to Chaplin, who cut onto his left foot before hitting a shot which took a deflection and was forced away by the keeper.

Town should have made it 4-0 in the 81st minute when Al-Hamadi crossed low from the right and Sarmiento slammed wide at the near post with other players behind him in a better position.

Millwall ought to have pulled a goal back two minutes later when a corner from the right fell to Watmore beyond the far post but the former Sunderland blazed over. On 84, Saville was booked for a foul on Sarmiento as Town broke. Ahead of the free-kick, the Blues swapped Burns for Kayden Jackson.

Watmore was booked for a foul on Sarmiento in the 88th minute, then in the third of four added minutes, the Blues were awarded a penalty.

Al-Hamadi cut inside Wallace as he broke into the area and was upended. Referee Barrott pointed straight to the spot.

The Iraqi international took the kick himself and sent it low to Sarkic’s left as the keeper moved in the other direction to claim his first goal in a Town shirt.

The whistle went soon after, to further boos from the home fans who were left in the Stadium.

Town saw out the second half as professionally as they could have done, the match having been won before half-time, with few dramas at either end of the pitch.

Millwall never showed any sign of getting themselves back in it, while the Blues only really looked liked adding to their goals on a couple of occasions prior to Al-Hamadi’s late penalty.

Aside from the first 15 minutes, as comfortable a win as you get at Championship level with the Blues never really having to overextend themselves with Millwall doing much to bring about their own downfall.

An important win for Town, however, in the context of the run since before Christmas, with the victory the Blues’ second in 10 in the Championship, at the start of a run of - on paper - less tough matches, one which will have given the squad a boost of confidence after one or two difficult afternoons and results.

The Blues, who are now only a point behind third-placed Southampton, are in action away again on Saturday, at Swansea City, with the Swans 17th following their 4-0 home defeat by Leeds last night.

Millwall: Sarkic, McNamara, Wallace, Cooper (c), Bradshaw (Watmore 71), Flemming, Leonard, Saville, Esse (Mayor 71), Honeyman (Mitchell 71), Harding (De Norre 46). Unused: Bialkowski, Tanganga, Campbell, Boateng, Walker.

Town: Hladky, Clarke, Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis, Morsy (c), Luongo (Travis 75), Burns (Jackson 86), Broadhead (Sarimiento 46), Hutchinson (Chaplin 46), Moore (Al-Hamadi 75). Unused: Walton, Tuanzebe, Humphreys, Harness. Referee: Sam Barrott (West Riding). Att: 15,890 (Millwall: 2,962).

Photo: Matchday Images

BlueRuin69 added 22:38 - Feb 14 Brilliant from Clarke and Broadhead but pure class from Chaplin to let Ali get his first goal. Coyb
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SpiritOfJohn added 22:40 - Feb 14 Back on track in style. The doom mongers didn't see this coming, but we now have the firepower to worry better defences than Millwall and so many options in attack. Good to see Broadhead full of confidence again and Burgess did well on his return. I thought Harry Clarke had one of his best games and showed our wingers the kind of cross that Moore will score from. Super cameo from Ali - he looks a real handful!

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bobble added 22:58 - Feb 14 groovy....
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GiveusaWave added 23:02 - Feb 14 Think bobble sums it up nicely... Great win for the team. We are back in it for sure....
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EricGatesShinpad added 23:03 - Feb 14 St Valentines Day massacre !!!!!
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TimmyH added 23:19 - Feb 14 A much needed and solid win...have to be honest I wasn't overly blown away by the performance and it was a case of 'what went right did go right' the opposite of a few games over the last couple of months. Millwall were generally poor although we could have been behind in the opening 10 minutes...we were then better for the next 30 minutes with a nice nodded on goal by Broadhead (my MOTM) but the other goals were all rather fortunate and even the penalty in the dying embers looked outside the box. Good 3 points but be under no illusions although Swansea were beaten easily at home by Leeds last night they're a better footballing outfit than Millwall and won't want to lose 2 running within a few days at home.

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KiwiBlue2 added 23:21 - Feb 14 A good three points and also a good lift for our goals for tally. The latter could be a defining measure in what I think will be a very tight race for the second automatic promotion place. We need a few more big wins to boost that tally as that statistic could end up being vital at the end of the season. A 3-0 or better at Swansea on Saturday would give our goal difference margin another good boost....coyb

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VanDusen added 00:58 - Feb 15 I never thought I'd live long enough for us to cruise to a win at the Den of all places! What none of the media seem to have noticed is the punishing nature of the fixtures last nine games and how decently we've been playing. Really, bar QPR at home - when the squad was stretched to the limit and perhaps not finishing off a resilient ten man Stoke, what's been a particularly 'bad' result? Leeds away was always likely to be a loss and I'll wager we are very likely to be the only team who'll end unbeaten against them this season. Maidstone was a freak and the comeback at Preston had the feel of a winning performance bar some poor reffing. Maidstone was a freak where the performance was adequate enough. On paper at least the fixture list til Easter now looks a lot lot nicer for us than either of the other two's. If we can get a run going now I genuinely believe this could be ours. And let's not forget, the points totals this year are insane. We keep this squad together and we'd have a decent chance of winning the division next year if we just slightly beef up this squad - starting with signing up Moore permanently and sealing up that loan extension for Sarmiento. Amazing days anyway.

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ThaiBlue added 04:26 - Feb 15 Good result keep it going boys and cut out silly mistakes and I think we can get 2nd place
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Saxonblue74 added 06:41 - Feb 15 A great result of course, but I'm finding the comments interesting. In my opinion the difference tonight was the opposition, not necessarily the performance (or perhaps a bit of both?). Aside from set pieces which were defended solidly I don't think our defensive performance can be judged as Millwall offered so little. The small things that have been going against us were well and truly in our favour tonight. Great finish from Broadhead, then an OG, a hint of fortune from Moore(although a good header) and a penalty that may easily have been given as a free kick. The stats from last night are way down from WBA and Preston, both with around 25 attempts on goal compared to 8 last night. The only stat that matters is of course goals scored, and 4 is a great result and good for GD which could be important. Delighted with the result, but flattered by the opposition in my opinion.

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therein61 added 06:54 - Feb 15 That performance has been coming for a while we have not been at the races individually or collectively but last night it clicked now you lovely boys lets go on a run to the prem.
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johnwarksshorts added 07:31 - Feb 15 Great result. After 15 min spell we were in total control. Like the way McKenna used Hutchinson in that 10 roll.
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Rimsy added 08:02 - Feb 15 Great win, much needed. Hopefully that will boost confidence for the remainder of the season. Shout out to Keifer Moore, really shored up the defence, didn't miss anything in the air, as well as good work the other end.
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gosblue added 08:03 - Feb 15 It was a bit like a training match but why bust a gut if you don’t have to. This group oozes quality. Hutchinson is like a new signing. One observation is how well the new signings have integrated. Moore, Al-Hamadi and Sarmiento look like they’ve always been here. I was particularly impressed with Jarvis when he came on. Compared to his previous performances, he slotted into the Morsy role really well stifling Millwall’s growing threat and taking the ball off Hladky and defenders and moving us forward. This allowed Sam and our attacking players to move up 10-15 yards and force Millwall deeper. And who knew that Davis can actually defend. An excellent performance by Leif in a different way. We don’t always appreciate how much ground he covers.

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Marinersnose added 08:03 - Feb 15 An excellent performance and a much needed confidence boost. Hutchinson and Broadhead outstanding. Good to keep a clean sheet as well with Clarke having an excellent game at the back. Burgess again getting the plaudits but his distribution was poor and he was twice caught in possession which nearly lead to goals. He was clearly off the pace and McKenna alluded to this in his post match interview. We go again Saturday against another poor side.

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BonchoBlue added 08:39 - Feb 15 A great night obviously and we really needed it, chuffed for the lads in what was a v professional performance. We all hope it’s the start of a great run. Cam back made a massive difference. Can anyone tell me what on earth is going on with Brandon Williams though?! It’s like he’s some sort of enigma, and still at United. It’s just odd, is he with us or not.
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Sandman180 added 09:01 - Feb 15 A good win, nice confidence boost heading into Saturday. Milwall were one of the poorest teams we've faced this season, both home and away, devoid of any real attacking threat and awful in terms of their general set up, I'd be hard pressed to name one player in their squad who I'd have at Portman Road - wouldn't surprise me if they go down. Clarke very good, toss up between him and Broadhead for MOM - glad to see Broady showing glimpses of his old self, hopefully he starts peaking at what's going to be a crucial point in the season. Time to knuckle down now for the next five games, so we get an understanding of where we're likely to be as we head into the business end of the season with 10 games to go. Anything between 10-13 points would be a good return , from three home games and two aways. Hard to know what to expect with Swansea, although confidence can't be great after the hiding that Leeds gave them; Plymouth away is always a difficult place to go, a point there would be solid enough. Win the three home games and we'll still be in the mix - Leeds/Southampton both entering more difficult runs, on paper anyway, but anything can happen in this league, still a few more surprises to be thrown up I'm sure. On we go!

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monkeymagic added 09:02 - Feb 15 It seems we took nearly 13k, 2.9k would have been v impressive.
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Gazelle added 09:13 - Feb 15 Nice to see us achieve results from high crosses, something that’s been lacking since Hirst’s injury.
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Bert added 09:19 - Feb 15 Am I the only one wondering if Hutchinson went to ground in order to receive instructions ? There was no apparent injury and it looked like he was waiting for a bus !
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blues1 added 09:28 - Feb 15 Sick parrot. Why oh why do some fans just say we had a poor start.? Did you not expect Millwall to come out of the traps fast and put us under pressure early on? Know I did, so did Mckenna, and no doubt, the players too. We did what we needed to do. Defended well, and then werexable to impose our game on them. Why not give the opposition some credit for their start to thd match, rather than just give all the we started badly.

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dirtydingusmagee added 09:38 - Feb 15 Thank the Lord for that !, A win and 3 points. Strange game really, imo we were'nt great last night even though it was 0-4. Really worrying defending at times . However weve done the job and we are still hanging in there. Pleased for young Ali getting his ''starter'' goal ,onwards and upwards from there hopefully. COYB
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algarvefan added 09:53 - Feb 15 I'd like to say a big thank you to our travelling fans, they were amazing last night, we must have one of the best and noisiest away fans in the Championship. I have loved watching Town over the past 100 games, Mark Ashton, you and your team have done a superb job over the whole club, it's a great time to be a Town fan again.
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Rimsy added 09:56 - Feb 15 Bert, I thought that at the time. The whole team went over for an impromptu coaching session.
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Linkboy13 added 10:04 - Feb 15 Didn't go to the match last night but people tell me that Millwall were the poorest team we've played in the championship this season. I listened to the game on Talk Sport 2 for an unbiased coverage although Scott Minto is a bit of a closet Town fan he reckons Hladky looked very nervous in goals and should have been catching shots that he was parrying. I think young Al Hamadi is going to be a massive signing for us.

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