IT was an oh-so telling moment when the claret and blue away fans turned their backs on Alex McLeish and his Villa players midway through the second half at this of all places.

The Etihad, or whatever it’s called nowadays, has been the scene of some significantly sombre events in the very recent history of AVFC.

It is the venue where Villa’s Champions League dream died indefinitely in May 2010 when Martin O’Neill’s top-four hopefuls lost out in phase one of Roberto Mancini and Sheikh Mansour’s multi-million Blue Moon masterplan.

It is the venue where the first public fan dissent of the Gerard Houllier era was heard in last season’s 4-0 league drubbing in late December, growing from a miserable murmur to a chorus of condemnation with February’s unforgivable forfeiting of an FA Cup tie.

It is the venue two of Villa’s former bright hopes Gareth Barry and James Milner – now both FA Cup winners and Champions League players – were apparently vindicated in choosing over Villa Park to achieve football, and financial, fulfilment in a hurry.

So with 65 minutes on the clock on Saturday afternoon and transitional Villa heading to a comprehensive defeat to a top-flight force destined for the Premier League summit and a genuine title tilt, the reaction of the travelling claret and blue brigade said it all.

Collectively, they threw their arms around each other’s shoulders, span away from the pitch and bounced up and down with a Villa version of City’s ‘Poznan’ dance, greeting Stephen Warnock’s fierce strike from Gabby Agbonlahor’s cross as if it were a winner rather than a consolation.

It’s called gallows humour.

By that stage Villa were 3-1 down after gifting set-piece goals to Mario Balotelli and Vincent Kompany, with a Warnock -assisted Adam Johnson goal in between.

Milner, with the help of Barry, was still to make it four with a wonder goal carrying a Bodymoor Heath hallmark.

But if the visitors’ tongue-in-cheek celebration put a brave face on an 11th away defeat at City in 12 matches, most notably it signalled a grim acknowledgement of their current place in the scheme of things compared to hosts intent on English and European football domination.

It suggested that rather than arguing over whether Randy Lerner, O’Neill, Houllier, McLeish, Barry, Milner et al, or all of the above and more, should be scapegoats, the claret and blue family do realise the City slickers are responsible for changing the Premier League landscape beyond Villa’s immediate reach.

As unpalatable as it was, Saturday provided a salutary lesson to Villa’s followers that blaming their own is far less productive than sticking together and enjoying supporting their club for better or worse. Not that the club’s irrepressible away fans need telling.

While Villa’s prospects and personnel have changed dramatically, their fans’ positive and vocal backing on their travels has been the one welcome constant.