Stephen Clemence has no inside knowledge about the Birmingham City starting line-up for the match away to Norwich City on Saturday but he has a hunch, as we all do, that he will not be selected to play on the left wing.

"No, I don't think I will be there next match," he said, conveniently forgetting that, in that position against Blackburn Rovers last Saturday, he was among Birmingham's best three players.

Humility is part of Clemence's nature - he seems awkward when discussing his attributes - but he is also a realist. He knows that Birmingham have a multitude of players geared towards playing on the left wing and that he is not one of them.

So when he emerged as a first-half substitute, replacing Darren Anderton, even Clemence was surprised to learn that he would play in an unfamiliar wide role, just in front of Stan Lazaridis.

"To be honest, I was just pleased to play a part," Clemence said. "I don't think I am at my best on the left flank. I think the manager [Steve Bruce] knows that. When I went inside, I was a lot happier. I thought I passed the ball around well.

"I was happy with my contribution and we played some good football. We put Blackburn under pressure and got a great result.

"When the manager told me to play on the left, I was just pleased that I was going on. It was an opportunity to do something. It does not matter where you play. You just go out there to try to impress."

The beauty of Clemence is his consistency. He never gives less than 100 per cent effort, rarely gives the ball away, and seems to embody Birmingham's rise towards Premiership respectablity. Along with Jermaine Pennant and Emile Heskey, he was their best player against Blackburn.

He is not a Lazaridis or a David Dunn or a Julian Gray but, in one sense, that is to Birmingham's advantage. Every team needs its Stephen Clemence.

"Obviously I am not going to get the ball and run at players like Julian Gray or Stan Lazaridis," Clemence said. "But I felt that I could make a good contribution by coming inside a bit.

"By coming inside, that gave Stan the chance to overlap me on the outside. At times we did that well in the first half and it worked out OK but I don't think I will be there next match."

Birmingham's 2-1 victory, secured thanks to goals by Robbie Blake and Heskey, was particularly memorable because it provided the rare sight of the team winning after going behind.

"We do not win many games coming from behind," Clemence said. "We showed good character on a hot day but it is never good to go a goal behind. We did not deserve to go behind but we got on with it and came away with a great result.

"I thought, in the first half, we started really well and dominated but they scored with probably their only chance. It was a disappointing goal to let in from our point of view. We did not let Blackburn physically get on top of us.

"I think, from past experience, we can stand up to people and be counted. We did that because we had to and I thought we played some good football at times, too."

The victory might not have come had Blake not scored in the 61st minute, within a minute of coming on as a substitute. Blake has had few opportunities in the first team since his move from Burnley in January but his goal did much for his confidence.

Clemence said: "Robbie Blake is a good player to come off the bench, even if he won't like me saying that. He always wants the ball and is never afraid to gain possession. He can twist and turn. I am pleased that he scored because he is a nice lad, too.

"It was great that Emile Heskey scored the winner. When Emile signed last summer, we knew it was a great signing. He has done it at the top international level.

"He has had his critics but I think it has been unfair because he is a great team player. He does get his fair share of goals. Ten goals in his first season here is a good return, I think, considering that he has not had a regular strike partner. He is happy and all the lads think highly of him. He knows that."

One player who was nowhere to be seen was Robbie Savage, the Blackburn midfield player, who left Birmingham under a cloud last January and was omitted from the match because of a "gentleman's agreement" between the clubs. Clemence is not sure how much Blackburn missed Savage.

He said: "We knew about two days before the match that Robbie Savage would not be playing. There is no animosity towards him, certainly not from my point of view. I played with him for most of my time at Birmingham City, so I know him well. Perhaps he did not go about his move in the way that most players would have done, but Sav does a lot of things that nobody else would do."