Hull City 1-1 Stoke City

Last updated : 23 October 2007 By Rick Skelton
It wasn't a particularly good game today, in fact, I don't think it's possible for a good game to happen if Stoke are involved. We deserved a point, not because we were great but because Stoke didn't do anything to merit taking the 3 points. I think last season, we would've lost that game. It was a scrappy game, Stoke nicked a goal and spent the rest of the game with 9 behind the ball making things difficult, while we huffed and puffed trying to come up with something a bit different to break them down. A year ago, we wouldn't have broken them down and we'd probably have lost a second goal while we were at it.

This squad is made of sterner stuff. Turner and Brown were given a torrid time by Sidibe and Fuller. Sidibe won everything for 60 minutes, every throw in, every long ball and every goal kick, he was immense, but our two kept plugging away and gradually got on top. They weren't perfect, but they did enough, won plenty of second ball and got in blocks and headers on set pieces. Their goal was poor, Sidibe strolled through our defence, evading feeble tackle after feeble tackle, and Delap tapped in after Bo saved well. That aside, we did OK. Stoke are a rotten team, they hit balls from every direction at Sidibe's head and get Fuller and Cresswell in around him. It's effective, but it spits in the face of everyone who's ever tried to play football. It's horrible, like 80's Cambridge or 90's Lincoln. It's a hell of a test for a defensive line though, every time the ball hits the deck, it gets launched at Sidibe. It took us a while, but eventually, Turner started to win his fair share, while the others backed off and ensured that if it dropped, we were in a position to win it. As a result, we've earned another point that we didn't get last year.

We set out with a 4-4-2. Ricketts sensibly came back in at right-back, while Hughes replaced Elliott wide on the left, presumably due to Stuey's jaunts to Latvia and Iceland. The rest remained, having done pretty well last time out. We had the better of the first half, creating better opportunities and plenty of crossing opportunities, but without ever dominating the game. Whether it was conscious or not, we played like Stoke. There wasn't a lot of quality on the ball, instead we hit the front men far too early and struggled to get players around them. The few moments of quality came when Hughes was able to put a foot on the ball. He created a good opportunities for Garcia to shoot and cross after coming inside and linking up with Marney, the 'keeper saved well from Garcia and Folan respectively. On most other occasions, we weren't brave enough, far too happy to just knock the ball forward. Ash had a go at getting it down and moving it and Folan wanted it on the floor, but everything was disjointed. Stoke were a threat, but it rarely translated to efforts at goal. The save Bo made in the run up to their goal was the only time he was stretched all game.

In the second half, we started brightly but things didn't really change until Okocha replaced Marney. The ovation for Okocha was probably the biggest roar we've heard at the KC. Following his introduction, we managed a bit more football, but it still wasn't great. If the ball wasn't at his feet, it was still likely to be launched forward aimlessly. Actually, aimlessly is a bit harsh, it was generally aimed at Windass, but if he won more than 10% of the balls that went his way, I'd be surprised. One of the more disappointing aspects was the way we continually bombarded Windass with aerial offence, long after it became obvious that he wasn't going to win anything. We did a good job of pressing Stoke back, which led to a succession of corners and throw-ins, but we didn't create a lot of chances. Bridges replaced Hughes as we switched to 4-3-3, which seemed a bit odd, Hughes would've suited the 4-3-3 a lot more than Garcia (who dropped beside Ash), a situation that Browny corrected, replacing Garcia with Livermore shortly after. Both subs played a big part in our equaliser. When Livermore came on, I imagined he and Ash would sit back and let Okocha go and play higher up the pitch, but instead, Okocha moved a little to the left and Livermore played through the middle, getting into the box whenever he could. We scored a nice goal, Bridges picked up in midfield, spread the ball well to Ricketts, always willing to bomb on. He delivered past the far post where Folan nodded back across the goal and Livermore beat the 'keeper at the near post to head in from 2 yards. Following the goal, we looked more likely to score than at any other point. We were a bit more creative with set pieces and a lovely move created a shooting opportunity for Folan but he back heeled instead. At the other end, Stoke piled the weight on our defence (Parkin came on) and they had a couple of weak strikes at goal. They'd settled for a point.

Myhill returned in goal (Matt Duke injured?). He was totally reliable, but distributed poorly for 80 minutes. He took far too long and then punted long balls that we generally didn't win. When he finally sped up and started to play the ball shorter, we looked a lot better. He wasn't helped by Delaney and Ricketts, who didn't look like they wanted short passes much. Duke's distribution against Norwich was far more effective. Ricketts did OK at right-back; we certainly looked more balanced. He gives so much as an attacking force, but still looks liable to be turned inside out going backwards. Delaney is the opposite, he's reliable at the back, but ponderous going forward and guilty of panicking in possession far too often. The worst example came in the second half when Okocha made space on the left, Delaney drew Lawrence away from Okocha and then instead of sliding the ball to his mate, hit a poor cross field ball to no-one, leaving us exposed.

Marney had a poor game. On one or two occasions, he looked like he could run the game, but spent the rest wandering around behind Ash and trying to look busy. He made it far too easy for the gaffer to bring him off and did nothing to suggest he should start next time. It's a shame. He's got bags of talent but is far too inconsistent and unable to take a game by the scruff of the neck. There's far too much competition from Hughes and Okocha for that to continue. Hughes was easily our best player. He made things happen, kept his discipline on the left and used the ball well. I wouldn't have taken him off. Ash had another good game, breaking up play and using the ball well, short and long. Everytime a better player walks through the door, Ash rises to the challenge. He has a winning attitude that needs to rub off on those around him. There'll come a time when Ash isn't good enough to be the engine of our team but it hasn't come yet, not by a long shot. Garcia was quiet, he was well marshalled aside from 2 or 3 half openings.

Up front, Windass was as quiet as you'll find him. The service was poor and he struggled to trouble their defence. He might have won a penalty after he cut inside from a short corner. I thought it was a penalty on first (and only) viewing but the referee disagreed. He also disagreed with a Stoke shout when Turner crashed through Fuller, so it evened things up. Folan showed a little bit of the speed and verve we saw at Blackpool, but like Windass, he struggled to make an impact due to the close attention of the Stoke defence and our own creative shortcomings. Bridges didn't do a lot bar his part in the goal.

All in all, a decent point against an ugly team who tend to win more games than they lose and a good sign of some of the progress we're making. Okocha showed some glimpses of his magic, quick feet, eagerness to get shots in and great set piece delivery. Slotting him into the team will be a tricky prospect. It will be a big burden on Ash to put JJ alongside him in a 4-4-2. That's all up to Phil Brown. He's doing OK this season. All of his signings look good. He picked a decent side today and then tweaked it with good effect. 5 points from 5 games isn't great form, that'd make 46 points over a season, generally enough to get relegated. However, it's 5 more points than at the same stage last season and certainly something to build on. 2 tough away games next, then 2 winnable home games. At least we don't have to play Stoke again for a while.

Ratings: Bo 6, Ricketts 7, Delaney 6, Brown 6, Turner 6, Garcia 6 (Livermore), Hughes 7 (Bridges), Ashbee 7, Marney 5 (Okocha), Windass 5, Folan 6.