The Tigers could yet have 10 games left this season if they go all the way to the play-off final
Hull City’s fans have enjoyed a fine season so far(Image: Steven Paston/PA Wire)
Hull City have surprised many pundits and observers with the season they’ve enjoyed so far, and with seven games to go Sergej Jakirovic and his players could yet spring their biggest yet.
City are fifth in the Championship as England’s second-tier prepares to return after the March international break, and it comes back with a bang and the pivotal Easter weekend.
The Tigers are five points off automatic promotion and three clear of seventh, in what promises to be a gripping final five weeks of the regular season.
Perhaps those who have been most surprised have been City’s own supporters. Put through the wringer this time last season with a very real threat of relegation back to League One, many fans have watched on this season in amazement at the job Jakirovic has done.
The Croatian had never managed in England, let alone in arguably the toughest league in Europe, and then throw in a ban on buying or paying loan fees for players, his job was seismic.
Thirty-nine games later, with 10 home wins and 10 on the road, Jakirovic and his players could yet deliver a promotion to those supporters in a few short weeks.
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To get a feeling of what the fans have been thinking in recent days, we asked them to mark City’s campaign so far out of 10, and here a selection of what they’ve been saying…
Rob Wilson
“What a good question! It has different answers depending on how you interpret the question, in my opinion. Out of 10, based on my expectation at the start of the season, given the embargo, unknown manager, season before: 10, no question. Based on how good we have shown we can be and where we’ve spent most of the season in the table: 8 – I had hoped that we’d be nine points clear of 7th at this stage. I’ve enjoyed the Championship this season, and I have to be reminded when teams do a smash and grab on us that we’ve spent most of the season doing just that, so I can’t be too despondent. If we could just turn it up a notch at home as both fans and players, we’ll storm the play-offs.”
Mark Brady
“8. Missed lots of chances to go top two against weaker opposition. We’ve got the fifth-highest wage bill in the league and we’re fifth. With the transfer embargo, we have done really well recruiting players at the beginning of the season. The January transfer window could have been better. Hope we have a strong finish and get promoted. I’ll give them a 10 if we do. UTT.”
Lee Chamberlain
“9.5 – an excellent demonstration of how to play a bad hand extremely well. But not without flaws.”
Patrick Maguire
“From what I expected after the end of last season, with yet another unknown manager going into this season and a transfer embargo, it was hard to be optimistic, but looking at it now, it has to be a 9… if we get promoted, I’ll be a 10, but no matter what happens in the last seven games, it’s an exceptionally good season.”
James Edge
“10, anything higher than 22nd this season would have been considered a successful campaign given the restrictions, up there with the favs to go down as well, I’d have been happy to settle for top half if someone offered at the start of the season.”
Debra Cassar
“9/10 for me. Best I’ve seen the team play as one in a long time. Oli coming over was a very smart move.”
Lee Roy
“10/10. Purely cos if we’d been offered a top-half finish at the start of the season, we’d snatch their hands off. No transfers and loads of injuries, we’ve done amazingly to be in with a shout of the play-offs. Been some disappointing results, but anyone can beat anyone on their day. The fact that we’re up there is levels beyond what anyone expected in August.”
Glenn Williams
“Any true City fan would say 10. With all the restrictions, we were written off as relegation fodder by all. No spending, fantastic team recruitment and a far better manager deserve full credit.
“Some people are still obsessed with promotion and get upset and negative because we have lost a few games. They seem to forget about the huge injury list we have had and still have, which has impacted a few results.
“The aim was survival, and that has been achieved. IMO, my preference is to stay in the Championship, rebuild restriction-free on whatever squad remains and go again.”
Louise Courtney Darvell
“10/10 new unknown manager, embargoes, restrictions, not had a fully fit squad since the start, still managed to sign some really good players who nobody thought would come here. Up and around the top six most of the season, and everyone wrote us off for relegation before a ball was even kicked!!”
Chris Wilson
“It’s a question of perspective. At the end of last season, after Walter-Ball, the marginally better but uninspiring Selles and surviving relegation on goal difference, anyone would’ve been more than happy with mid-table, let alone top six. 10/10.
“However, after such an impressive run of results before Christmas, with injuries and the embargo, expectations were raised, perhaps unfairly. so. When City had an off day or were well-beaten, these performances are then compared to the much better ones during the season and seem inexplicable. A common theme you hear is ‘they can play much better than this”. 7/10.”
Dave Ireland
“Got to be 10, everyone had us going down, and look where we are, really played out of their skins this season, well done to all the recruitment staff.”
Wendy Taylor Gibbons
“9 1/2 …. only for the injuries we’ve had. We’ve had literally EVERYTHING thrown at us this season to make us struggle, but we’ve pulled it off with the fantastic recruitment against all the odds, and it’s been such an exciting season, and who knows what will still happen?”
Debbie Harlock
“Unbelievable after the situation we are in. Thought we would be a cert for being relegated at the start of the season. Just an awesome season.”
Lee Dolman
“9. That goes for the players, Sergej, the coaching team, the recruitment team and everyone at the club. If we win promotion, then the 9 increases to a 10.”
Christoper Gardham
“10…….no money, transfer embargo, unknown manager, and so many injured players! Has to be 10…….if you’d have said we’d be in 5th place at this stage of the season after last season, I’d not believe you.”
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