After we lost 4-0 to Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, Steve Bruce ordered the whole team in for some unexpected extra training on the Sunday. He was obviously not at all happy at what he had seen and we all shared his profound disappointment.

Having been at Blackburn for so long, it was a strange experience to play them for the first time. I had a lot of friends and family come down to the game, and looking back at it, maybe I tried too hard. Playing with so much adrenaline and being desperate to put in a good performance can actually drain you, and I think that's what happened.

On Sunday we were forced to watch a video of the game, and to be honest, it confirmed what I had thought at the final whistle: for the first hour we were probably the better team. Then they scored after 66 minutes and then the goals kept on coming. I would say that Andy Cole's introduction as a substitute changed the whole game as he set up two of their goals with great passes. They deserved to win, but 4-0 flattered them.

My old team-mates from Blackburn went easy on me after the game; there was no gloating or friendly banter, they could see how down I was about the result. A few of them actually offered words of encouragement, and my old boss Graeme Souness made a point of coming up to me, and said, "Keep your head up." I appreciated that. It was a nice touch from him.

The next day I was sitting at home when I started to get loads of text messages saying, "I can't believe we've got you in the Cup." At first, I thought Birmingham had drawn Accrington Stanley, who a lot of my friends back in Lancashire support. Then I flicked on the television to discover we had been drawn to play Blackburn at St Andrews in the third round of the FA Cup.

This gives us an immediate opportunity to get some pride back. My friends and family will all be coming back down for the game, and I and the rest of the team will be determined to put on a good performance this time. Of course, before then, we travel to Leicester on Saturday. This is a massive game for us, as we are desperate to put our bad run behind us. None of us want to be called in for extra training this Sunday.