Liam Ridgewell grabbed an injury-time equaliser against Spurs as Birmingham extended their unbeaten home record.

The defender volleyed in from close range in the 91st minute when Cameron Jerome's header across the box caused confusion in the Tottenham defence.

The visitors took the lead in the 69th minute when Jermain Defoe latched on to Gareth Bale's strong left-wing cross to drive a right-foot shot past Joe Hart.

Striker Chucho Benitez spurned two good chances for the hosts in either half.

The point ensures Birmingham maintain their impressive home Premier League record - their last defeat at St Andrews came on 26 September - while Spurs see their advantage in fourth place cut to just one point following Liverpool's victory over Bolton.

The result will frustrate Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp, who has strengthened his defence with the arrival of Younes Kaboul from Portsmouth, while Benitez's wastefulness in front of goal will intensify Birmingham boss Alex McLeish's quest to find a new striker before January's transfer window closes on Tuesday.

Striker Jerome passed a late fitness test, allowing McLeish to name an unchanged starting line-up for the 11th successive match, with new £3m signing Craig Gardner propping up the bench.

With on-loan signing Eidur Gudjohnsen given time to settle into his new surroundings following his move from French club Monaco, Redknapp began with the starting XI that beat Fulham in midweek, although striker Roman Pavlyuchenko, the subject of a reported midweek £8m bid by Birmingham, was missing because of injury.

Despite ending their 15-match unbeaten run following their 3-0 defeat by Chelsea on Wednesday, much of Birmingham's excellent mid-season form has come from their obdurate defence.

However, the back four were left exposed when Luka Modric spurned a chance from 10 yards following a mistake from Lee Bowyer on the halfway line in the eighth minute.

With former Blue Wilson Palacios bossing midfield, allowing partner Tom Huddlestone to spread passes across the pitch, Tottenham began to dictate the early tempo.

Despite their clear advantage in possession, the visitors were almost undone by a long ball flicked on by Jerome for Benitez. The Ecuadorian striker turned Michael Dawson before attempting to place his finish past Gomes, but instead he fired meekly straight at the Brazilian.

The half-time interval gave Spurs time to reassess their tactics, with their most promising second-half moves originating on the right flank with the impressive David Bentley, playing in only his fifth Premier League game of the season, causing left-back Ridgewell a plethora of problems.

The £15m signing from Blackburn forced Hart into a good save in the 49th minute before Modric bisected Birmingham's two centre-backs with a pinpoint pass into the path of Defoe, but his heavy first touch landed into the path of strike partner Peter Crouch, who struck a poor left-footed shot wide.

But the visitors took the lead in the 69th minute when Bale drove powerfully towards the byeline and his cross was flicked on by a crouching Crouch on the edge of the six-yard box into the path of Defoe, who hammered his finish past the diving right hand of Hart.

Benitez spurned another excellent chance when his shot was blocked by Dawson following a perfectly timed run latching on to substitute Jeff Fahey's pass.

But moments after the fourth official signalled five minutes of injury-time, left-back Ridgewell lashed in Jerome's excellent header from close range.

Birmingham boss Alex McLeish on striker Chucho: "He carved out a great chance in the first half, maybe he should have put his laces through it and it was a powerpuff shot.

"But he's dangerous and if we can get more balls into him in the box, that's when he is really dangerous and comes alive.

"I thought we lacked a wee bit of quality and looked a little one-paced. But it was a marvellous result from a not very good performance from us, our aggression and will to win got us through it."

Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp: "We dominated the game, so I didn't really see the goal coming. It was a poor goal and it was pretty horrendous defending from a team that defended well all day and never were in any danger.

"We were in control of the game, we just had to continue playing the way we were. We had three points in the bag and threw two away.

"But we've only had one defeat in 12 games, so we're not in bad form. I was delighted with he way we played it's not an easy place to come to."