The summer signing finally made his Championship bow for the Tigers at the Kassam Stadium
Dillon Phillips made his Hull City debut against Oxford United on Good Friday(Image: Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Dillon Phillips admitted he felt like an excited child before making his Championship bow for Hull City at Oxford United on Good Friday.
Phillips’s only two previous outings in City colours this season came in the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, but he deputised for Ivor Pandur after the Croatian only returned from international duty late on Thursday, joining the rest of the squad at their Oxford hotel.
The experienced stopper, who joined City in the summer, delivered a composed display in difficult conditions and was only beaten by Cameron Brannagan’s well-struck penalty to earn the home side a point in a 1-1 draw.
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Phillips has had to be extremely patient for his league debut this term, and he admits even at the age of 30, he was hugely excited to be given the opportunity by boss Sergej Jakirovic.
“I’ve played a good chunk of Championship games before, and that’s why I was brought into the club. I’m really happy. To be honest, I’ve been so excited all night when I knew I was playing and I couldn’t wait,” he told Hull Live.
“Especially with the club being in the position we are, what an opportunity, what a chance. I was over the moon and looking forward to it. I felt like a big kid again last night, and I was really looking forward to it. Obviously some nerves when you’ve not played a league competitive fixture in a little while in the Championship. There is that little bit of nerves, but I like to think I used them to my advantage, and I enjoyed it.
“I slept like a baby, I always do. I don’t struggle to sleep, thankfully. Maybe after a mistake or something, you can struggle, but I slept fine, and I was up ready and raring to go.
“I didn’t think about the conditions all week, really. I was just over the moon to be getting a chance, and then as we got there, we were warming up, and I was thinking. How about that? How’s your luck in your first game, and you’ve got to deal with that. I think it kept me concentrated, it kept me switched on, it kept me busy. It’s worked in a bit of a positive way for me personally.
“We would have loved to have won the game, and I’d love to have not touched the ball for 90 minutes and won 3-0, but we didn’t, so onto Monday.”
It’s expected Ivor Pandur will return to the starting XI on Monday night when the Tigers host runaway league leaders Coventry City at the MKM Stadium, and Phillips says he’s enjoyed the opportunity, whatever happens against the Sky Blues.
“You have to ask the manager that question,” he said when asked if he expected to keep his place. “I don’t know. I’m just here to do a job, and that’s what I’ve done. I’ve really enjoyed it. And whenever I’m needed or called upon, I wanna play games of football. I love playing football, and I’ve enjoyed today, so it’s not for me to answer. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
After going in front courtesy of Mo Belloumi’s fine goal, City were forced to settle for a point which perhaps felt like two dropped in the promotion race, as attention now turns to that big showdown under the lights.
“We’re disappointed after that result, but we haven’t got time to be sad. We go again on Monday. It’s going to be a big one,” Phillips continued.
“It’s a massive game against the league leaders, it’s what you wanna do. You want to test yourself against the so-called best, so we’re looking forward to it. I’m sure it’ll be a full house, and it’ll be noisy. Let’s hope we can take three points, that’s what we’re looking to do.”
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