Hull City have had something of a revolving door in the goalkeeping department in recent years with the trusted man between the sticks having seen the type of changes the managerial department has gone through. Matt Ingram, Ryan Allsop, Anthony Racioppi and Carl Rushworth are among those to have left in the last year or so, while Thimothée Lo-Tutala has left on loan to Doncaster for the forthcoming season.
With the impressive Ivor Pandur having grasped his opportunity to become City’s most reliable player last season, what the Tigers needed this summer was someone to challenge the number one, but also provide the right type of character. Thirty minutes with Dillon Phillips is enough to convince City have got a key bit of recruitment just right.
At 30-years-old Phillips arrives in East Yorkshire with a wealth of experience, not just of the Championship but of the lower leagues. And it’s that experience from his time at Rotherham most recently, for example, which is driving his desire to be a success in the Championship once again and beyond that, to see how far he can go with City.
Signed as a free agent, the former Cardiff City and Charlton Athletic goalkeeper has settled in well and comes with a spring in his step, a cheeky smile on his face with a joke or two, but ultimately with a desire to push Pandur all the way for his number one position.
“I think if I sat here and said to you that I was going to just come in and be happy to sit and be a back up to Ivor, then that would be doing myself an injustice and that’s just not the type of person I am,” explains Phillips as he faces the media for the first time as a City player.
“I want to support Ivor. Yes, I would love him to do great, and I’d love the club to do great. And that’s ultimately what we want as a team. But I feel like I can compete at this level and I’ve shown that in my career. I think I’ve played over 80 games in the Championship, so I know I can do it and I know the goalkeeping team respect me and what I can do.”
It’s the nature of goalkeepers and their different mentality that you immediately sense the genuine feeling of support from Phillips to Pandur, at this very early stage. That support will remain, but he’ll be doing all he can to push his nose in front of City’s number one as he bids to impress new manager Sergej Jakirovic.
“I’m coming in to compete and I’m coming in to push as hard as possible to play. I already know after a week’s training we’ve got a great dynamic among the goalkeepers and staff. The training dynamic with the us has been brilliant so far. So I’m really, really looking forward to it.”
Phillips is combining making himself feel at home at his new training surroundings with finding a new home with his fiancée as he prepares to lay down roots in East Yorkshire thanks to a two-year deal, with an option of a third year. While he’s yet to find his ideal house, his training surroundings have already impressed.
“One thing that really struck me was the facilities and the amount of staff here, it’s really top stuff,” added Phillips. “I said to me friends after the first day, this is a bit of me this, I’m really enjoying what we have here and all the different individual staff.
“It’s a step up from what I am used to and it’s something I am really looking forward to, working here.”