Watford 2 Birmingham 2

Birmingham took their first away point of the season with a hard-fought draw against Watford at Vicarage Road.

Blues twice took the lead, through Adam Rooney six minutes before half-time and again from Chris Wood with less than three minutes remaining.

But equalisers from Marvin Sordell with 10 minutes left and former Blues' defender Martin Taylor a minute into stoppage time saw The Hornets snatch a deserved draw.

The result leaves Watford in the relegation zone, with Blues just a single point better off, albeit with a game in hand on most of their rivals.

It also stretches Blues' winless away record to ten game without a win.

Hughton had to make one change from the team which defeated Nacional so convincingly in the midweek Europa League tie.

Liam Ridgewell returned to the team in place of the injured Steven Caldwell at centre back, having shaken off the shin injury which kept him out of the last two games.

But that aside, it was an unchanged team from Thursday night. Rooney and Wood were both selected in attack, marking the first time the former Newcastle boss had started with two up front in the league this season.

Scott Dann was again absent due to an ankle injury but one notable face on Blues' bench was Cameron Jerome, now recovering from a heel injury.

New signing Guirane N'Daw's international clearance had yet to come through, so he was unable to make his debut for Blues.

Aside from Taylor, who spent six years at St Andrew's between 2004-2010, there were other familiar faces on the opposite side.

Former Aston Villa midfielder Jonathan Hogg made his debut for the Hornets after signing for the club yesterday, while striker Andreas Weimann is on loan from Villa.

Former Walsall goalkeeper Rene Gilmartin and striker Troy Deeney both started on the Watford bench.

It was a scrappy start to the game, with too many long balls being pumped up towards both sets of forwards and possession being squandered often.

It took nearly 18 minutes for the game's first shot to be registered, with Nathan Redmond scuffing a shot well wide of goal from outside the box.

Watford winger Mark Yeates forced a solid save fromgoalkeeper Boaz Myhill two minutes later that was tipped over the bar, but his effort was deemed off-side.

And Wood headed a good chance over the bar three minutes afterwards as the ball ran free in the box from Beausejour's cross.

Weimann missed the target from an equally decent position at the other end as the game began to open up and Redmond earned a booking 19 minutes before the break for a foul on John Eustace.

The wastefulness in front of goal continued, as Craig Forsyth smashed over from a very promising position 10 minutes before the break after Myhill had parried the ball into his path.

Rooney made them pay four minutes later from close range, tapping home David Murphy's header from Beausejour's corner.

Chris Burke appeared to have doubled Blues' lead less than three minutes before half-time,but his effort was chalked off for a foul on Hornets keeper Scott Loach.

Watford pushed for an equaliser in the second half and Forysth missed the target from an unmarked position six minutes in, after Curtis Davies had been drawn out of position.

Eustace found the target soon afterwards, but Myhill made the save.

Hogg was then booked midway through the half for unsporting behaviour and Watford manager Sean Dyche introduced Deeney for Yeates with 18 minutes left, in a bid to bolster his attack for a final push.

But it was one of Blues' own players, Davies, who almost put the ball into his own net 75 minutes in.

Luckily, Myhill spared his blushes with a superb reaction save from the defender's backwards header.

Blues were looking ragged as the game entered its final stages and Hughton made his first change with 11 minutes left, replacing Rooney with Jerome.

But Sordell finally levelled the game just a minute later from just outside the area, to set up a tense finale.

Wood looked to have secured Blues an away win with just three minutes remaining,after Blues launched a quick counter attack.

But Taylor came back to haunt his former club, nodding home in stoppage time after Myhill spilled Sordell's shot.