A rested Villa play on a footballing surface for the first time in half a dozen games and hammer Birmingham with ease to push their neighbours nearer to relegation. Villa have the luxury of a full seven days before their next fixture but questions are asked as two matches in thirteen days does not seem like optimising a fixture list within which Villa still have at least 18 games to play before the traditional end of the season in April - just 6 weeks away. Villa then are likely to need to play at least three games per week until the end of the season, why not fit some of those in now to reduce the burden on Joe Mercer's men?

Joe Mercer's Villa, having played five games in three months play their fourth in ten days as they hammer neighbours Birmingham to make it two defeats in sixteen and twelve wins, seven draws and seven defeats in twenty six division one games so far in 1962-63.