What were your expectations at the start of the season? Have they been matched?
We did most of our transfer deals close to the start of the season and just before the window closed so it was hard to assess the standard of the squad assembled. Few of those signings have yet made much of an impact.
A battle to avoid relegation seemed likely but it's disappointing that we've never looked like pulling away from it. We came close after a good run of form in November but hadn't got enough early season points under our belts before a really tough winter schedule that was always going to drag us back down.
Has the manager done a good enough job?
Phil Brown should really have gone a few months ago. Too many points were dropped against teams around us.
He made a lot of signings we haven't had enough return from. Some of them looked like quite good players but after a few games would be dumped in favour of someone else. There must have been more to it than what we saw on the pitch.
Scoring goals was a problem for us in the second half of last season so Brown signed attacking players in the summer and sold defenders, but his tactics weren't conducive to creating chances. Having a "clean sheet mentality" only works when you're any good at defending.
Replacing him now with Iain Dowie is a gamble worth taking.
Predictions
Remaining fixtures:
| Fulham (H) | W |
We've got a reasonable run-in. Given our away form I wouldn't expect anything from the trips to Stoke and Birmingham, but we should be capable of getting results from the next four home games. Hopefully Wigan will go on a losing streak and we'll be close enough to overtake them with a win at the DW Stadium on the penultimate week. But knowing Hull City, they'll build up our hopes and then let us down then or on the last day. |
| Stoke (A) | L | |
| Burnley (H) | W | |
| Birmingham (A) | L | |
| Aston Villa (H) | D | |
| Sunderland (H) | W | |
| Wigan (A) | D | |
| Liverpool (H) | D | |
| Points: | 36 |
Will Hull City stay up?
I think it will be very close. Hopefully Burnley will be consigned with Portsmouth and then it will be between City, West Ham and Wigan for the third place. We're capable of doing it but we need to make sure those home games are wins and not draws, and the result at Wigan could be crucial.
The bottom 3:
18. Hull City
19. Burnley
20. Portsmouth