The Tigers are preparing for Saturday’s trip to Norfolk
Hull City threw open the doors to the MKM Stadium on Monday morning to welcome more than 2,000 fans to watch Sergej Jakirovic’s side train.
Barely 48 hours on from Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Charlton Athletic, which denied the Tigers a fourth win on the bounce, the club’s supporters were back to enjoy a raft of free activities on the concourse, watch the players train and then meet them afterwards for a lengthy signing session as they took time out from their preparations for Saturday’s trip to Norwich City.
Here’s a look at what happened on Monday…
A rare opportunity for the fans
City do a fantastic job in taking their supporters along for the journey, with the sheer amount of events they lay on for members, and the wider community.
There can’t be another club in the 92 that provides a greater array of opportunities, and while many clubs do offer open training sessions, this was another in a long list from City and right at the start of half-term.
Over 2,000 fans turned up on Monday to watch Sergej Jakirovic’s squad train for an hour-and-a-half, before being able to meet the players and staff for a signing session inside the MKM Stadium.
Later in the week, a lucky group of fans will get to go bowling with members of Jakirovic’s squad, which is a unique opportunity for Tigers followers.
Absentees
The obvious thing to notice about Monday’s session was the lack of senior players. Numbers in the group were swelled by the likes of Bobby Moore, Ramell Carter, Pharrell Brown and Cathal McCarthy, amongst others, stepping up from the academy to try and impress the watching Jakirovic.
Given the sheer number of players absent, there was no Oli McBurnie, Liam Millar, Mo Belloumi, John Lundstram, Akin Famewo or David Akintola, though Matt Crooks watched on with his big coat and slippers. The only things missing were a rocking chair, a pipe and a glass of single malt.
The players unavailable remain a real concern to Sergej Jakirovic and are the biggest worry facing the Tigers after what has been a fantastic start to the new campaign.
Long time no see
It’s been a nightmare few months for left-back James Furlong, having suffered an injury in the final weeks of last season, which saw him miss the promotion party at AFC Wimbledon, where he was spending a spell on loan.
Furlong has continued to be plagued by injury throughout the summer and in the early weeks of the new campaign, but he was back in full training and out on the MKM Stadium pitch.
What the future holds for the Irishman remains to be seen, especially following the arrival of Brandon Williams, but just being back fit is vitally important.
A watching brief
Probably not by fluke, much of the session was structured around getting the ball moving forward quickly and getting shots away and with the focus on work in and around the box, it’s perhaps not a surprise to see such an improvement this season.
Last season’s shot-shy Tigers have been and gone, and the work being done by Jakirovic and his staff, coupled with the summer recruitment, has helped change that.
Jakirovic is one of those managers who spends a lot of time observing from the sidelines and allows his coaches to dictate the flow of the session; Marko Salatovic and Dean Holden are the two key protagonists, but he interjects when he needs to.
Preparing for Norwich
This was a largely light session for the majority of the players who played against Charlton Athletic on Saturday, with those taking it steady.
John Egan, Charlie Hughes, Semi Ajayi, Ryan Giles and Kyle Joseph were among those players who featured in the first half of the session but didn’t take part in the second. Managing their workload is important going into the weekend and things will be built up in the days ahead, and away from the gaze of the public.
He’ll also hope for good news regarding Crooks and Millar, and their respective scans, whilst at the same time, hoping McBurnie, John Lundstram and Mo Belloumi continue to progress in their respective recoveries to enable them to be involved before the international break.
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