City head to the capital, looking to secure an away leg victory in the Championship play-offs
Matt Crooks and Camiel Neghli battle in the first leg of the semi-final(Image: Greig Cowie/Shutterstock )
Matt Crooks believes Hull City will not be short of confidence as they prepare to head to London for the second leg of their play-off semi-final against Millwall.
Friday night’s tussle at the MKM Stadium ended goalless, with it all to play for in front of a sold-out crowd at The Den for a place in the Championship play-off final at Wembley later this month.
While Millwall enjoyed a fine season of their own in finishing third, the Tigers boasted an impressive away record of their own and were convincing 3-1 winners back in December, with Kyle Joseph scoring a brace and Oli McBurnie capping a dominant away success.
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That was just one of seven defeats suffered in Bermondsey by Alex Neil’s Lions this term, but Crooks believes City have what it takes to face up to what will be a lively atmosphere, to say the least.
“It was a battle, probably to be expected. Millwall got the style of play, really effective. They’ve had a really good season – third in the league for a reason,” Crooks told Hull Live.
“You’ve got to respect that, and I thought they put us under the cosh at times, thought (Josh) Coburn was real good up front, made a nuisance of himself like he always does and they’ve got good individual quality on the front line, so we knew it was gonna be a tough game, but we’re going to The Den with the one game to take ourselves to Wembley. It’s a bit like last week, really (final game against Norwich City), one game shootout that’ll be fun.
“We’re full of confidence going down to The Den. We got a result there just before Christmas, and we’re positive that we can do it again.
“It’ll be a totally different game, totally different atmosphere, but it’s one to be embraced. It’ll be noisy, it’ll be fun, you’ve got to embrace it. I’ve said plenty of times, it’s a privileged position that we’re in.
“They might give us a bit of stick, but it’ll be fun. We did win last time we were down there, and we’ve got quality all over the pitch, so I’m confident the lads can produce a result there, and I know the rest of our team feel the same.”
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