Birmingham City 0 Blackburn Rovers 1

For 90 arduous minutes, Yorke saw his every touch booed by boisterous Birmingham fans determined to give him flak for his previous connections with arch Midlands rivals Aston Villa.

But it was the ex-Trinidad and Tobago international who ultimately enjoyed the last laugh after his first league goal in a Rovers shirt wrecked the Blues' big day.

Typically, Yorke grinned from ear to ear as he gleefully silenced the boo-boys with an ice-cool finish in the 13th minute.

And judging by the way he linked up impressively with strike-partner Andy Cole in attack, Rovers fans can expect to see plenty more of that beaming smile over the next nine months.

City were desperate to mark their first home game back in the top-flight after a 16 year absence with a barnstorming performance to match the mood of expectation in the stands.

And they were perhaps entitled to feel a touch aggrieved after referee Dermot Gallagher denied them what looked like a clear penalty midway through the second half when Henning Berg flattened Stern John in the box.

But Rovers know from experience that such hard-luck stories carry little weight in the cut-throat world of the Premiership.

And unless manager Steve Bruce can inject some much needed quality into his squad, then the Blues look destined for a long, hard winter of discontent as they scrap for their lives at the wrong end of the table.

Rovers, on the other hand, have every reason to look onwards and upwards.

Although they never quite slipped into top gear here, they always appeared to have that little bit extra in the locker.

And, had they demonstrated more composure in front of goal, then the punishment they inflicted on Birmingham would have been even more severe.

"We didn't play anything like we are capable of, we gave the ball away far too much for my liking, but when we got it down and passed it in the last third, we caused them lots of problems," enthused Souness.

"We carved them open every time we got it down and made passes and normally speaking, Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, David Dunn and Damien Duff would finish in those situations with one eye closed.

"So on another day it could have been an easier game for us if we had tucked those chances away but instead we made life difficult for ourselves."

There was a real buzz of anticipation as top-flight football returned to St Andrews for the first time since 1986 but Rovers refused to be intimidated by the white-hot atmosphere.

Skipper Garry Flitcroft epitomised the determination in the visiting camp with a towering display on his return from injury.

With Keith Gillespie ruled out through suspension, Souness gambled on throwing his captain straight back into the fray despite his lack of match fitness.

Typically, Flitcroft responded in the only way he knows how, throwing himself head-long into tackles as if his life depended on it which had a galvanising effect on the players around him.

Dunn seized the chance to impress the watching Sven Goran Eriksson with an inventive performance on the right.

And, with Duff bubbling with his usual effervescence on the left, there was a rapier-like quality to some of Rovers' work on the break.

On another day, Cole alone would have had a hat-trick but for once his magic touch in front of goal deserted him.

However, there was still plenty to be encouraged by as he and Yorke linked up sublimely on a number of occasions in a partnership which looks full of goals.

That wasn't the only partnership to catch the eye, either.

Craig Short and Martin Taylor also appear to have the makings of a formidable alliance at the back after they chalked up their second successive clean sheet.

But the fact that the Blues failed to fashion an equaliser was also due in no small part to Brad Friedel who pulled off a world-class save to deny Stern John what looked a certain goal during a frantic second half.

The tone for the afternoon was set in the 13th minute.

Nissa Johansson slipped a clever ball inside to Dunn on the left who burst past a defender and cut into the box with menace.

Although his initial shot was blocked by a defender, the ball fell kindly for Yorke who swivelled to drill it past Nico Vaesen from six yards out.

That lit the blue-touch papaer and Duff should then have made the points safe when Dunn, Yorke and Cole all combined superbly to send the young Irishman clear but he fluffed his lines and fired straight at the keeper.

Birmingham refused to be overawed, however, and gradually clawed their way back.

John had a goal-bound volley blocked before Martin Grainger then tested Friedel with a dipping free kick.

After the break, they cranked up the pressure as John just failed to connect with a couple of crosses from the right.

Then Goeff Horsfield should have done better with a header from close-range with the goal at his mercy.

However, the real turning point came in the 60th minute when John was sent crashing to the floor by a clumsy challenge from substitute Berg but, despite furious penalty appeals, referee Gallagher remained unmoved.

To make matters worse, John then saw a goal-bound header brilliantly clawed away by Friedel and from that point on City looked resigned to their fate.

Cole, Yorke, Berg and Duff all had late chances to wrap things up but Rovers were made to sweat until the final whistle.

So four points from two games represents an excellent start although Souness is refusing to let his guard drop.

"It's going to be a long, hard winter for everyone," said the Rovers boss.

"There are no easy games in the Premier League. It doesn't matter who you play for. If you're one of the top teams, no-one wants to do you a favour.

"And if you're one of the bottom ones, then you are fighting for your life.

"So no-one has it easy and that's what makes this such a fantastic league."

Try telling that to a Birmingham fan right now.