North Ferriby United 1 Hull City 3

Blimey, time for Ferriby again? That came around quickly. I'd barely had time to miss football. Andy Murray hasn't stopped sipping champagne and we're only one test into The Ashes! Still, this is one of my favourite fixtures of the season. You've got love a visit to a ground where you can hit the wall when it isn't even a free-kick. The only sour note was the stupid decision to stage games against Ferriby and Winterton on the same night. I didn't like having to choose and I feel sorry that Winterton have missed out on my £15 or so and many others. It meant a split in the squad. One lot were sent over the bridge to West Street and ran out 6-0 winners with goals from Meyler, Fryatt (3), Evans and a mysterious trialist. Most of the rest lined up at Church Road thus:

The split in the squad did mean the majority of the Tigers played a full 90 minutes which is highly unusual at this stage of pre-season. A few were blowing by the end but they'd put in a decent effort, played the game at a decent intensity and restarted quickly when the ball went out. Despite the heat, there was no stopping for drinks breaks, it was a solid workout. Ferriby, as you'd expect given their promotion to Conference North looked the best I've seen them. They were well drilled, moved the ball well, were aggressive and very threatening from set pieces. They look to have better strikers than before with good movement. They've recruited well.

The game wasn't the best. It rarely is in pre-season. The excitement carries you through the first quarter hour and then you remember it's just a friendly and they're generally rubbish. Certainly for long periods in the second half there wasn't a whole lot of goal mouth action. In fact the work in the last third let City down throughout. Otherwise they passed quite nicely, created space on the wings and got into reasonable positions. In the first half, the threat all came from Brady. In the second, it was all Rosenior. Brad made the first chance after 30 seconds, clipping the ball into Quinn' path, the 'keeper advanced and Quinn lobbed the ball wide of the empty net. A few drunkards in the corner behind McGregor's goal chanted "Who needs Mourinho? We've got Steve Brucio". Not sure about that one.

City led two-nil at the break. Brady linked up with Quinn on the left and crossed for Liam Rosenior to tap-in. Rosie didn't even raise an arm in celebration. Probably too surprised! [0-1] Nick Proschwitz doubled the lead with a tap in after the 'keeper had pushed out his own header from Brady's deep cross. [0-2]. Proschwitz had earlier survived a two footed tackle that would have seen a red card produced in a "real" game and had a smart shot stopped when he latched onto another rebound. Otherwise, he looked the same. Not quite quick enough, not quite strong enough and didn't win headers. His strike partner Boyd was also a bit below par, like the player who finished his loan spell last season. He makes the game look really simple when he's at his best. He was struggling with it here.

The second half was a quieter affair as mentioned. Ferriby made plenty of chances and looked a bit brighter for them. City huffed and puffed and got Rosenior in behind half a dozen times but didn't get enough reward for it. Rosie was great working up and down the flank and showed terrific pace but still struggles to find a cross at the end of it. The summer break hasn't provided some magic formula for anyone. Alex Bruce still passes to them sometimes. Tom Cairney still floats around, produces the odd lovely pass but watches games pass him by. Robert Koren can't remember what hitting the net feels like!

Ferriby pulled a goal back deservedy when Nathan Jarman, a terrific signing at that level, met a lovely cross [1-2]. They might even have equalised when the #7 capitilised on a mistake by McShane and chipped a lovely Cantona-esque shot underneath the bar but saw Allan McGregor tip it over. It was a terrific save from the impressive debutant 'keeper. He came out and collected crosses, made saves comfortably and kicked the ball well. The other new signing on display, Curtis Davies, had a pretty reasonable game. he looked great in the air at both ends, was confident on the ball and made one super tackle in the second half. The only black mark against his name were a couple of pathetic attempts to stop their #11 weaving through our defence in the first half.

City wrapped up a far from comfortable victory in the last minute. Quinn sprayed a pass wide to Rosenior, his cross was missed by everyone and fell back to Stephen Quinn who lashed the ball into the far corner [1-3]. The Billy Bly Trophy is ours once more. I'll tweet the highlights of the open top bus parade.

The Tigers now head out to Portugal for a couple of games and then face trips to Peterborough and Birmingham. It's disappointing that there aren't more convenient games locally but that is what it is. Nothing really matters until August 18th. That's when the real stuff starts with an over-priced trip to Chelsea. We're a couple short in the final third. I think everyone knew that already. It didn't need this game to tell us anything. It did though. It told us that our best two forwards were in Winterton!

Championship Preview

Barnsley

Keith Hill did a tremendous job in 2011/12 to keep Barnsley in the division despite working with one of the smallest budgets. Barnsley's recruitment for the coming season is a little bit more ambitious with Hill picking up players released by Premier league clubs and the signing of ex-Middlesbrough and West Ham lardarse Mido. It's hard to see anything other than another season of struggle for the Tykes especially given the loss of Jacob Butterfield to Norwich City at the end of his contract. Butterfield was the most talented kid to come through Barnsley's academy in years. Keith Hill is a really likeable guy who's worked his way up into the Championship and I'd love to see him succeed again but it's doubtful.

IN: Lee Collins (Port Vale), Kelvin Etuhu (Portsmouth), Jacob Mellis, Mido (Zamalek [EGY]), Ben Alnwick (Spurs), Toni Silva (Liverpool), Tomasz Cywka (Reading)

KEY OUTS: Jacob Butterfield (Norwich)

PREDICTION: 24^th

Birmingham City

It hasn't been the summer of turmoil some feared at St. Andrews with the financial implosion either an overblown rumour or an accident still waiting to happen. Birmingham lost their talented manager Chris Hughton to Norwich which was a major blow after he worked miracles last season leading the Blues to the Championship play-off semi-finals. The appointment of Lee Clark looks a very shrewd move though. Clark was one of the free agents on the market after being fired by Huddersfield last season despite the club sitting in the top 6 in League One and having lost only a handful of games in the prior 18 months.

Goalkeeper Ben Foster, who made his loan move to West Brom permanent, and Jordan Mutch have been the only departures from Birmingham this summer so far and Clark has made several excellent signings, making good use of the loan and free market. He also picked up Darren Ambrose for a song as the goalscoring midfielder had only a year left on his contract at Crystal Palace. Birmingham are working with a relatively small squad and still have one or two players such as Curtis Davies, Jack Butland and Nathan Redmond who may attract interest from the Premier League before the end of the summer transfer window which would make repeating last season heroics unlikely.

IN: Peter Lovenkrands (Newcastle), David Lucas (Rochdale), Hayden Mullins (Portsmouth), Darren Ambrose (Palace), Ravel Morrison (West Ham loan), Ben Gordon (Chelsea loan), Alan Maybury (St. Johnstone)

KEY OUTS: Jordon Mutch (Cardiff), Ben Foster (WBA)

PREDICTION: 13^th

Blackburn Rovers

Who could possibly predict Blackburn Rovers season? They were relegated from the Premier league last season after 18 months of turmoil with supporter unrest towards the clubs Indian owners and manager Steve Kean at the heart of the problem. Kean inherited a good squad from Sam Allardyce and spent a fair amount of money but barring one or two impressive results, failed to get anything out of the talented players at his disposal. In his defence, while he spent good money on first team players, the squad eroded in terms of depth of quality and so Kean was forced to blood a number of young players last season, particularly in defence.

Kean's recruitment this summer looks terrific on paper. Midfield schemer Danny Murphy is a terrific signing as is his ex-Fulham team mate Dickson Etuhu who'll bring real strength to their midfield. Signings like these and powerful striker Leon Best (who will unfortunately miss 6 months of the season) suggest that Kean knows what it will take to get out of the Championship. His other signings are a mixed bag but former Portugal international Nuno Gomes could set the division alight. He and the lesser known Portuguese signings join an eclectic squad and while the likes of Vukcevic, Formica and Rochina have talent, they struggled to cope with the physical element of the premier league so may find it impossible to impose themselves on the Championship.

IN: Danny Murphy (Fulham), Leon Best (Newcastle), Nuno Gomes (Braga [POR]), Fabio Nunes (Portimonese [POR]), Paulo Jorge (Porto [POR]), Edon "Edinho" Junior (Olhanense [POR]), Dickson Etuhu (Fulham), Colin Kazim-Richards (Galatasaray [TUR] loan)

KEY OUTS: Yakubu (Guangzhou Fuli [CHI]), Junior Hoilett (QPR), Vincenzo Grella (Released), Miguel Salgado (Released)

PREDICTION: 2^nd

Blackpool

Blackpool is another side whose season is tough to predict. Ian Holloway is their wildcard. He got a very ordinary looking squad of journeymen players promoted to the Premier league, almost kept them up and then, following the departure of Charlie Adam last summer, led them to the play-off final. Their recruitment also looks ordinary and they haven't really lost anyone of real importance given that Lua Lua was used mainly as a substitute last season and Keith Southern spent most of the season fighting cancer. They have a couple of real talents in wingers Matt Phillips and Tom Ince plus the evergreen Kevin Phillips up front and a bunch of players who know how to win games at this level. When you add in Holloway's ability to get an extra 25% out of anything in an orange shirt, hence the number of tango-men going on stag do's in Blackpool at the moment, it'd take a fool to write them off.

IN: Jake Caprice (Palace), Isaiah Osbourne (Hibs), Tiago Gomes (Hercules [SPA]), Scott Robertson (Dundee U)

KEY OUTS: Lomana LuaLua (Karabukspor [TUR]), Keith Southern (Huddersfield)

PREDICTION: 7^th

Bolton Wanderers

Owen Coyle's Bolton probably weren't fancied by too many people to slip out of the Premier League but they never really got going and despite the talent in the squad they never really picked up the form you thought they might be capable of. It was felt that the trauma of Fabrice Muamba's collapse at White Hart Lane might have fired up the united Bolton squad but instead they were drained of energy and emotion and after 11 years, they slid out of the "Barclays Premier League". Despite the loss of a number of big-name players, Bolton have plenty of talented players remaining such as the marvelous Chung-Yong Lee, Stuart Holden and Martin Petrov, players who know how to get out of the Championship like Sam Ricketts, Darren Pratley and Chris Eagles and plenty of physical presence from the likes of Zat Knight, David Wheater and Kevin Davies.

Their recruitment looks pretty impressive too with Matt Mills and Keith Andrews having had impressive spells in the Championship in the past (though Mills disappointed big style at Leicester last season) and promising young forwards Gregg Wylde and Benik Afobe. Bolton's weakest point appears to be in goal with the erratic Adam Bogdan backed up by their butter-fingered signing from Leeds United, Andy Lonergan.

IN: Gregg Wylde (Rangers), Keith Andrews (WBA), Matt Mills (Leicester), Joe McKee (Burnley), Andy Lonergan (Leeds), Benik Afobe (Arsenal loan)

KEY OUTS: Nigel Reo-Coker (Released), Ivan Klasnic (Released), Jussi Jaaskelainen (West Ham), Ricardo Gardner (Released), Gretar Steinsson (Released), Paul Robinson (Released), Sean Davis (Released)

PREDICTION: 1^st

Brighton & Hove Albion

Brighton enjoyed a good season back in the Championship last season under the management of Gus Poyet. They play a good brand of football and press from the front when they don't have the ball. Last summer’s surprise signing Vicente has committed himself to the club for another season and has been joined by an ex-Valencia team mate in full-back Bruno (Saltor). Bruno played for Valencia in the Champions League last season and brings extensive experience with him from Spain. The signing of goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak from Manchester United and ex-England left-back Wayne Bridge on a season long loan from Manchester City are impressive pieces of business. Andrew Crofts has returned to the club from Norwich and he'll bring composure to the midfield.

Brighton have shown they are ambitious in the transfer market and have not courted interest in the likes of Craig Mackail-Smith and Lewis Dunk. They now have a squad that is balanced in terms of experience which may have let them down at times last season.

IN: Tomasz Kuszczak (Man Utd), Bruno Saltor (Valencia [SPA]), Wayne Bridge (Man City loan), Charlie Oatway Jr., Andrew Crofts (Norwich)

KEY OUTS: None

PREDICTION: 4^th

Bristol City

Derek McInnes took over last season but failed to turnaround their poor form. They've let a lot go of a lot of fringe players in the summer but haven't excited the fans with their signings so far. They found Jody Morris working the morning shift at a little chef just outside of Perth in Scotland, rescued Greg Cunningham from his career as a full-time loanee and signed Paul Anderson whose career has gone off the boil of late. Anderson will be a fine signing if he can recapture the form he previously showed in loan spells at Swansea and Forest while Tom Heaton should be an upgrade on a well past his calamitous best David James. City struggled to score goals even before they lost Nicky Maynard to West Ham last season so unless they fill that void, they'll be in big trouble.

IN: Jody Morris (St. Johnstone), Greg Cunningham (Man City), Paul Anderson (Forest), Tom Heaton (Cardiff)

KEY OUTS: David James (Released)

PREDICTION: 23^rd

Burnley

The Clarets were on of the most inconsistent teams in the division last season following clumps of good results with larger clumps of poor ones. They've trimmed a squad that wasn't particularly big to start with and have sold their prized asset, striker Jay Rodriquez, to Southampton. Eddie Howe doesn't appear to have been given a great deal of the Rodriquez money to re-invest but has made several decent signings in defender Jason Shackell, tidy midfield player Brian Stock and Wales striker Sam Vokes. Vokes is a promising young forward but may feel the pressure of having large boots to fill. Burnley will need Vokes and Charlie Austin to have exceptional seasons to make any impression on the Championship and will have to rely on good fortune unless they significantly bolster a thin squad.

IN: Luke O'Neill (Mansfield), George Porter (Orient Compensation), Jason Shackell (Derby), Joseph Mills (Reading loan), Sam Vokes (Wolves), Brian Stock (Doncaster)

KEY OUTS: Jay Rodriguez (Southampton), Andre Amougou (Released)

PREDICTION: 17^th

Cardiff City

The Redbirds made one of the most controversial moves of the summer when they sold their history down the river and signed a deal with the Malaysian devil. It's a shame that the rebranding issue has over-shadowed the job that Malky Mackay did at Cardiff last season as he took over a squad shorn of talent who'd either returned to their parent clubs following loan spells or left through freedom of contract. Mackay re-built the squad without spending a lot of money and brought through several promising players from the club's youth academy. A pretty quiet summer transfer-wise exploded in the past couple of weeks with Mackay making two excellent additions in Icelandic striker Heidar Helguson, a proven Championship goalscorer, and football's angriest dwarf, Craig Bellamy. Mackay may still face his biggest challenge this summer by holding on to Peter Whittingham but if he can, they look sure to be involved in the promotion race again and should benefit from the playing staff being familiar for the first time in a while.

IN: Joe Lewis (Peterbro), Jordon Mutch (Birmingham), Etien Velikonja (Maribor [SVK]), Heidar Helguson (QPR), Craig Bellamy (Liverpool)

KEY OUTS: Kenny Miller (Vancouver Whitecaps [CAN]), Anthony Gerrard (Huddersfield), Tom Heaton (Bristol C), Lee Naylor (Released)

PREDICTION: 5^th

Charlton Athletic

It's been a quiet summer for Addicks boss Chris Powell who signed nearly 20 players at the same time last year. The League One champions have a squad of talented players but don't have too many who've exceled in the Championship and will face a tough battle to stay in the division. They should have momentum early on and have a few seasoned pros like Leon Cort and Johnnie Jackson to lean on when times get tough. I think they'll survive but only just.

IN: Jordan Cook (Sunderland), Lawrie Wilson (Stevenage), Salim Kerkar (Rangers)

KEY OUTS: Gary Doherty (Wycombe)

PREDICTION: 21^st

Crystal Palace

It could be a difficult season for Palace who enjoyed a stress-free ending to the 2011/12 season under Dougie Freedman. It was their first for a while. Freedman has expertly guided a young squad showing maturity far beyond his years as he did as a player. He'll have to perform above himself again this season as Palace have lost four good players in hot young right-back Nathaniel Clyne, Darren Ambrose, lanky one cap wonder Anthony Gardner and winger Sean Scannell. Scannell hasn't lived up to his promise in the game but still has all the physical attributes to make it big. Peter Ramage is a gnarly old centre half who'll do well and Joel Ward showed promise at times in a sinking Pompey outfit. It seems unlikely that Aaron Wilbraham will improve their attack though. He's a hard working guy but he's not a difference maker. Palace is another side whose squad looks small this season and may rely on "emergency" loans for depth.

IN: Joel Ward (Portsmouth), Aaron Martin (Southampton Loan), Aaron Wilbraham (Norwich), Peter Ramage (QPR)

KEY OUTS: Anthony Gardner (Sheff Weds), Sean Scannell (Huddersfield), Darren Ambrose (Birmingham), Nathaniel Clyne (Southampton)

PREDICTION: 16^th

Derby County

I admire the way Derby County is run under Nigel Clough. They spend wisely, invest in young players and don’t allow older players to block the development of their own products. They’ve improved year on year and have a nice blend of youth products and shrewd acquisitions. That will be tested this season. Chris Maguire is no-loss, he failed to deliver after his signing from Aberdeen, but Jason Shackell and Paul Green could really be missed. Also worrying for the Derby fans is the seemingly imminent departure of Steven Davies. On the plus side, Clough has signed Northampton's classy young midfielder Michael Jacobs, tough tackling Preston midfielder Paul Coutts, centre-half Richard Keogh and Doncaster's attacking right-back James O'Connor. Their squad was looking a little thin but Clough has done a decent rebuilding job while staying true to his philosophy. The Rams are unlikely to mount a promotion bid but should be too good to fall into a relegation battle too.

IN: Michael Jacobs (Northampton), Paul Coutts (Preston), Richard Keogh (Coventry), James O'Connor (Doncaster), Michael Hoganson (Newcastle)

KEY OUTS: Paul Green (Leeds), Chris Maguire (Sheff Weds), Jason Shackell (Burnley), Callum Ball (Coventry loan)

PREDICTION: 14^th

Huddersfield Town

Manager Simon Grayson has made a statement of intent following Huddersfield’s return to the second tier after an 11 year absence. Grayson cleared the decks following their League One play-off final win and allowed some older players such as Tommy Miller, Danny Cadamarteri and Gary Naysmith to move on. He took Crystal Palace striker Sean Scannell, once linked with multi-million pound moves to Spurs and West Ham, for just £400,000. Scannell has lost his way a little in the past couple of seasons but is still a young, dynamic player who has excellent dribbling ability and an eye for goal. He could be the steal of the summer window. They've strengthened the midfield significantly the signings of Manchester United midfielder Oliver Norwood, who impressed on loan at Coventry last season, Keith Southern and Adam Clayton from Leeds United. Grayson's defensive signings are equally impressive. Anthony Gerrard could form a formidable partnership with skipper Peter Clarke while Joel Lynch had an excellent season in a struggling Forest side last year. The difference between Huddersfield merely staying up comfortably and muscling in on the fight for a play-off place will depend on whether they hold on to Jordan Rhodes. Blackburn and Fulham are amongst his admirers.

IN: Sean Scannell (Palace), Paul Dixon (Dundee U), Oliver Norwood (Man Utd), Adam Clayton (Leeds), Joel Lynch (Forest), Keith Southern (Blackpool), Anthony Gerrard (Cardiff)

KEY OUTS: Gary Roberts (Swindon), Antony Kay (MK Dons)

PREDICTION: 11^th

Hull City

The Tigers have spent July recovering from 6 weeks of self-inflicted woe. Nick Barmby’s plan to transform City into the Barcelona of Yorkshire was ripped up and replaced with the Steve Bruce plan. That seems to be a return to playing with two up front, one of whom is a big lad, and having proper wingers who supply the ammunition. This plan will appeal to the supporters who didn’t enjoy the dominant but low-scoring performances under Barmby (and originally Pearson). Bruce has recruited well and quickly identified the gaps in the Tigers squad. Perhaps most importantly though the club has held on to some of the coveted young players like Cameron Stewart and James Chester while Robert Koren rejected the overtures of his former manager to sign a two year contract.

It’s easy to forget given the upheaval that Hull City finished 8^th in the Championship last season. Under Barmby, progress seemed inevitable. Under Bruce, it’s a tad more questionable. The squad is better but so are plenty of others. In a Championship that looks more competitive than ever, you have to move forward just to stand still.

IN: Ben Amos (Man Utd loan), Eldin Jakupovic (Aris [GRE]), Nick Proschwitz (Paderborn [GER]), Abdoulaye Faye (West Ham), Sone Aluko (Rangers), Alex Bruce (Leeds)

KEY OUTS: Kamel Ghilas (Reims [FRA]), Kevin Kilbane (Coventry), Dele Adebola (Rochdale), Richard Garcia (Released)

PREDICTION: 8^th

Ipswich Town

Paul Jewell's side has been quiet this summer. The signing of Scott Loach from Watford was a welcome on for the Tractor Boys who'd tried and failed to sign every second string goalkeeper in the land. If Loach had turned them down, Jewell had the Mounties on standby to search for Craig Forrest. Nottingham Forest's Luke Chambers will also help turnaround an often leaky defence while the loss of Grant Leadbitter and Jimmy "the parasite" Bullard may leave them short of midfield talent but will significantly improve their team spirit. In truth, Jewell needs 4 or 5 signings to make Ipswich competitive and they require fresh young blood, especially as their once prolific academy is no longer churning out stars.

IN: Elliott Hewitt (Macclesfield), Luke Chambers (Forest), Scott Loach (Watford), Massimo Luongo (Spurs loan)

KEY OUTS: Grant Leadbitter (Boro), Jimmy Bullard (Released)

PREDICTION: 20^th

Leeds United

Leeds dispensed with manager Simon Grayson last season and brought in Championship promotion specialist Neil Warnock. This one may well be one challenge too far for Warnock who is working on a tight budget. Leeds proposed takeover appears to be on hold at the moment and fans, already unimpressed with Ken Bates, will not have enjoyed seeing Adam Clayton and Robert Snodgrass join the talent exodus from Elland Road in recent seasons. Warnock has signed some good players, raiding hard-up Portsmouth for Jason Pearce and David Norris, signing experienced Norwich left-back Adam Drury and Derby's tidy Ireland international midfielder Paul Green. He's also taken his old mate Paddy "it was on prescription, honest, guv" Kenny who he's signed on 87 previous occasions.

Warnock's latest signing is El Hadji Diouf. Warnock famously labeled Diouf a "sewer rat" after he broke Jamie Mackie's leg during a Blackburn/QPR FA Cup tie. Warnock then suggested that he might have offended sewer rats. Of course, being that morality in top-level football is spelt ********, this hasn't stopped Warnock signing the player. If he thought Fred West could get 20 goals a season, Warnock would sign him too. Diouf had an excellent game for Doncaster at the KC Stadium last season. He'll probably do very well at Elland Road. It's a match made in heaven. Or hell.

IN: Jason Pearce (Portsmouth), Adam Drury (Norwich), Paul Green (Derby), Paddy Kenny (QPR), Andy Gray (Barnsley), Jamie Ashdown (Portsmouth), Luke Varney (Portsmouth), David Norris (Portsmouth), Lee Peltier (Leicester), El Hadji Diouf (Doncaster)

KEY OUTS: Adam Clayton (Huddersfield), Andy Lonergan (Bolton), Robert Snodgrass (Norwich), Andy O'Brien (Vancouver Whitecaps [CAN])

PREDICTION: 10^th

Leicester City

Leicester spent last summer shopping like Posh Spice on coke. Sven Goran Eriksson brought big expectations and a massive false dawn. The clubs owners look to have learnt from those mistakes and have since appointed (stolen) Nigel Pearson as manager and he's brought a calmer approach to player recruitment and altered unrealistic expectations. Pearson has rid the club of some of the bigger names and biggest earners, presumably to comply with financial fair play rules, and has made several solid if unspectacular signings. Full-back Richie De Laet and midfielder Matty James have joined Danny Drinkwater in signing from Pearson's favourite department store: Old Trafford. Zak Whitbread is a proven Championship centre half and Pompey's Marko Futacs has been brought in to replace the "Steve Howard option". Fleetwood's Jamie Vardy is Pearson's only expensive gamble so far but knowing how meticulous his scouting team is, he could be a rough diamond. I don't think Leicester have finished shaping their side yet. Pearson has been patient all summer and will pull one or two out of the bag before August 31st I'm sure.

IN: Ritchie De Laet (Man Utd), Matty James (Man Utd), Jamie Vardy (Fleetwood), Marko Futacs (Portsmouth), Zak Whitbread (Norwich)

KEY OUTS: Sol Bamba (Trabzonspor), Matt Mills (Bolton), Lee Peltier (Leeds), John Pantsil (Released), Darius Vassell (Released), Steve Howard (Hartlepool)

PREDICTION: 6^th

Middlesbrough

Boro had a good season under Tony Mowbray last time out but fell away after Easter. They have been keen to address the lack of depth in the squad this summer but have had to shop in a different market than the one they've been used too. Mowbray brought midfielder Grant Leadbitter back to the north-east from Ipswich and also rescued Jon Woodgate from the glue factory. His other signings have come from further down the leagues but appear to be well calculated gambles. Emanuel Ledesma is a creative midfield player who didn't have the best of spells at QPR but has recovered his form at Walsall. Mustapha Carayol is an exciting winger who's already trawled the lower divisions despite being only 23. They do know how to develop a winger at Middlesbrough though. In all Boro have a squad that is talented but has few experienced players. They'll hope to have less reliance on Marvin Emnes to score goals because when he went off the boil last season, so did they.

IN: Grant Leadbitter (Ipswich), Stuart Parnaby, Christian Burgess, Jon Woodgate (Stoke), Emanuel Ledesma (Walsall), George Friend (Doncaster), Mustapha Carayol (Bristol R), Jayson Leutwiler (Basle [SWI])

KEY OUTS: Barry Robson (Vancouver Whitecaps [CAN])

PREDICTION: 9^th

Millwall

Kenny Jackett has done an excellent job at Millwall in the last 3 years and has kept them up quite comfortably in the last 2 seasons. His ability will be severely tested by a division that looks stronger than ever this time. There are few stars at Millwall as they rely on being a better unit than the sum of its parts. Liam Trotter and James Henry are excellent in their midfield and Darius Henderson enjoyed a career renaissance last season. It's difficult to see them competing above the bottom six though and it will be a tough ask for players to keep playing above themselves.

IN: Maik Taylor (Leeds), Scott Malone (Bournemouth), Karleigh Osborne (Brentford), Danny Shittu (QPR)

KEY OUTS: Scott Barron (Brentford)

PREDICTION: 22^nd

Nottingham Forest

It took quite a while for Forest’s summer to kick into gear with the takeover by the Al-Hasawi family finally being completed in mid-July. By that time Forest had already lost McCleary, Chambers and Lynch on free transfers. The new owners wasted no time in sacking Steve Cotterill and appointing Sean O’Driscoll as manager. O’Driscoll is a good coach who was stupidly let go by Doncaster Rovers and helped revitalize Forest last season while assisting Steve Cotterill. With the owners backing, he’s dipped into the transfer market and made some decent additions. Daniel Ayala and Simon Gillet will help Forest play the brand of football O’Driscoll promotes while Simon Cox is a classy goalscorer who would have fit into any team in the division. Given the disruption and the changes in personnel, I think it’s unlikely that Forest will challenge for the play-offs but they should have a much better season than they did last time.

IN: Adlene Guedioura (Wolves), Danny Collins (Stoke), Greg Halford (Portsmouth), Dan Harding (Southampton), Simon Gillett (Doncaster), Daniel Ayala (Norwich loan), Simon Cox (WBA)

KEY OUTS: Garath McCleary (Reading), Luke Chambers (Ipswich), Joel Lynch (Huddersfield), George Boateng (Released), Paul Anderson (Bristol C)

PREDICTION: 12^th

Peterborough United

The Posh are a club who seem to be permanently in transition. Darren Ferguson has spent the past 6 months scouring the lower leagues again to find the players who’ll replace Joe Lewis and Ryan Bennett and preparing to replace George Boyd and Paul Taylor when they eventually move on. They’ll always take a chance on a player who is lower down the ladder; thy trust their judgement and they are generally rewarded for doing so. Their attacking philosophy stood them in good stead last season and it should do again. It’s more worthwhile to win some and lose some in the Championship than it is to collect a lot of draws. I admire Peterborough’s bravery and I think they’ll stay up again.

IN: Tyrone Barnett (Crawley), Shaun Brisley (Macclesfield), Nat Knight-Percival (Wrexham), Danny Swanson (Dundee United), Bobby Olejnik (Torquay), Nathaniel Mendez-Laing (Wolves), Michael Bostwick (Stevenage), Jonson Clarke-Harris (Coventry)

KEY OUTS: Joe Lewis (Cardiff), Paul Jones (Crawley)

PREDICTION: 18^th

Sheffield Wednesday

Wednesday are back at the level they feel they belong to at the very least. Dispensing with Gary Megson whilst sitting third in League One at the end of February seemed harsh but appointing Dave Jones was a masterstroke and he guided them to automatic promotion without losing a game. They’ve recruited two or three proven Championship players this summer as well as one or two wildcards. Neither Chris Maguire nor Michail Antonio pulled up any trees at Derby or Reading but Antonio did have a successful spell on loan at Hillsborough last season. Gary Madine had an excellent season in League One last season and with better players around him, he should adapt to the next level without any problems.

IN: Chris Kirkland (Wigan), Kieran Lee (Oldham), Joe Mattock (WBA), Anthony Gardner (Palace), Chris Maguire (Derby), Diogo Amado (Uniao Leiria [POR]), Nejc Pecnik (CD Nacional [POR]), Rhys McCabe (Rangers), Michail Antonio (Reading)

KEY OUTS: Clinton Morrison (Colchester)

PREDICTION: 15^th

Watford

It’s been a strange summer at Vicarage Road. The club was (eventually) purchased by the Pozzo family who already own Udinese and the Spanish club Granada. Granada was promoted to La Liga in 2010/11 with the help of players loaned from Udinese and the Pozzo family is trying the same trick at Watford. Sean Dyche was harshly dismissed as manager to make way for Gianfranco Zola and he’s overseen the sale of two of the clubs top players. They’ve been replaced by two experienced and, most importantly, free players in Fitz Hall and Manuel Almunia. A squad lacking in depth has been replenished by SIX players signed on loan from, shockingly, Udinese and Granada. And I thought the loan rules in this country were ridiculous before. Watford won’t be helped by the fact that last season’s top goalscorer Troy Deeney will spend the first few months of the season doing porridge. It’s difficult to predict what this Watford squad will achieve but knowing the history in this country of miserly foreign owners trying to do things on the cheap, I’m going for “not very well”.

IN: Fitz Hall (QPR), Manuel Almunia (Arsenal), Almen Abdi (Udinese loan), Matej Vydra (Udinese loan), Steve Leo Beleck (Udinese loan), Daniel Pudil (Granada loan), Ikechi Anya (Granada loan), Alex Geijo (Udinese loan)

KEY OUTS: Adrian Marriapa (Reading), Scott Loach (Ipswich)

PREDICTION: 19^th

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Wolves made a complete hash of the Premier League last season and suffered relegation after sacking Mick McCarthy, who’d kept them up twice before, and replacing him with a guy who had les experience of top flight management than your average Football Manager 2012 addict. They’ve corrected that this summer with the appointment of the experienced and well-travelled Stale Solbakken. Wolves have quietly gone about their business this summer and weren’t getting a lot of media attention until recently when they turned down massive bids for Steven Fletcher and Matt Jarvis. Even without those two players, Wolves have a squad of players who’ve excelled at this level before. Their additions are mainly unknown but striker Sigurdarson and midfielder Doumbia both come with good reputations from Norway and France respectively.

IN: Bjorn Sigurdarson (Lillestrom [NOR]), Frank Nouble (West Ham), Jamie Tank (Walsall), Tongo Doumbia (Rennes [FRA] loan), Slawomir Peszko (Cologne [GER] loan)

KEY OUTS: Nathaniel Mendez-Laing (Peterbro), Adlene Guedioura (Forest), Sam Vokes (Burnley), Michael Kightly (Stoke), Jody Craddock (Released)

PREDICTION: 3^rd

Hull City 0 Norwich City 0

The Tigers returned to the KC Stadium tonight for the only home pre-season friendly of the summer. It’s hard to believe the stadium is approaching 10 years old as it still looks as good as ever. It is only now though that I find it’s starting to feel familiar when you return after a summer off. The only unfamiliar thing about the stadium tonight was the pitch which looks excellent following the extensive work over the summer to repair the root base and relay the turf.

There was barely a game to report on in truth. Neither side over-stretched themselves with fitness and familiarity the key aims and trying to win the game far from the thoughts of both managers. Both teams played neat football and there was the odd late challenge but the only competitive edge on show came when the teams felt wronged by the referee. Grant Holt spent about 6 years complaining in the first half after it was adjudged that he fouled Dudgeon (admittedly a rather strange decision.) Goal mouth action was rare. The Tigers failed to create anything you’d call a chance while Norwich only threatened from a few set pieces and the occasional break away in the first half. In the second half, they created nothing too. I’m reasonably sure that the only serious save either ‘keeper made came when Ben Amos tipped over Russell Martin’s deflected cross.

Hull City lined up in a 4-4-2 formation. Sone Aluko played on the right wing and Robert Koren on the left with two players up front. It was a bold approach in theory but rarely in practice. Liam Rosenior made his first appearance of pre-season while 4 players made their first appearance for City at the KC. We lined up:

Amos; Rosenior, Dudgeon, Chester, Faye; Aluko, Koren, McKenna, Cairney; Proschwitz, McLean.

It wasn’t too dissimilar to the team and the system that we started last with at home to Blackpool. Barring any new signings and Matt Fryatt it looked a probable starting line-up for the Brighton game on August 18^th. Despite the lack of attacking threat, it was a much better performance than those against Grimsby and Doncaster recently. Norwich didn’t particularly look superior to us; it looked like two Championship teams in first gear. Their midfield probably had a bit more energy about it than ours but otherwise we were well matched.

Ben Amos looks a good kicker of the ball and is an athletic shot-stopper. He doesn’t look comfortable when he’s expected to come and collect the ball but hopefully if he can avoid a Gulacsi-esque early season nightmare he’ll grow into the role. Rosenior is short of fitness and only played half a game. He was replaced by Paul McShane at half time and McShane had a decent half. He very nearly played the best pass of the game to get Proschwitz through in the second half and then moved inside and held his own against Simeon Jackson. Personally, I’d go with McShane in the cup game on Saturday and give Rosenior another week to build up his fitness. Dudgeon got forward well, has a lovely first touch and flew into some terrific tackles. He just doesn’t have Andy Dawson’s positional sense and it was obvious that most of the few successful Norwich attacks from open play were in behind him. It’s going to be an interesting decision for Steve Bruce this one. I think Dawson is just about the better option at the moment but persevering with Dudge will probably benefit the club in the long term.

James Chester looked as good as ever. He and Faye made a promising unit and battled well in the air, took up good positions and made brave blocks when necessary. Late in the second half Tom Cairney broke out in midfield and Chester went racing down the right wing as at Cardiff last season. Tom ignored him. He deserved a round of boos for that. The only real worry defensively was that we looked a little shaky at set-pieces. Nick Proschwitz went back to help out while Sone Aluko was left upfield for any potential counter. You might remember Steve Bruce’s Wigan employed a similar tactic to devastating effect in our second ever Premier League home game with Antonio Valencia in the Aluko role. In defence of our defence it should be pointed out that Robert Snodgrass was the architect of most of their set pieces. One of the rare occasions we looked like a poor defensive unit came at Elland Road last season which I’d put down as being the fault of Peter Gulacsi and Robert Snodgrass in equal measure. Danny East also came on for the last 20 minutes or so and impressed. He needs a good season out on loan. He’s going to be a fine player.

Paul McKenna played his usual game but with a lack of desire to win the ball back that we’ll see in competitive games. He’s perhaps a little bit short of peak fitness after missing the first few friendlies. He got 88 minutes tonight which will do him the world of good. Tom Cairney continues to be the frustrating footballer on the planet. He’s got such a good left foot, he shows tremendous poise in possession and he picks out nice passes but he lacks dynamism and is as good as useless without the ball. He’s got a real opportunity to cement a place in our midfield with Evans’ injury and I really hope he can take it. Robert Koren continued to wear the captain’s armband and didn’t look too upset to be playing off the left wing. He linked up well with Dudgeon and worked hard enough. He put in a ridiculous swerving cross in the first half that flummoxed the Norwich defence and John Ruddy and, unfortunately, Nick Proschwitz. Sone Aluko took a while to settle. His first couple of crosses were well over-hit. He relaxed eventually and gave a decent account of himself. He’s got great pace which he used to skin Marc Tierney a few times and when he came inside he dribbled brilliantly on occasion.  He didn’t have his shooting boots on and there’s no evidence of him being a great crosser yet but he’s certainly exciting. He was replaced by Cameron Stewart who looked lively enough too but is struggling a little for luck. He made two good challenges in our half to help out his mates but both resulted in better passes to Norwich players than the man in possession could have made! He’s also still unwilling to just get the ball into the box. On one occasion he turned Martin four times (brilliantly) but didn’t deliver a ball in.

I’m hoping Matt Fryatt is just being held back a little after his knock because for all of Aaron McLean’s energy and endeavour, we don’t look threatening without Fryatt. T felt quite odd seeing McLean up front after all this time. He battled well and made himself available. There was also some evidence of City “getting the ball forward quicker” (not hoofing it, honest) which worked much better when McLean was on to challenge for the ball. I’m still fascinated when I see him beat a guy 5 inches taller than him (in this case Ryan Bennett) in the air. He’s got a phenomenal spring. Proschwitz did OK with the bits and pieces of the ball he picked up. He’s got a good touch, he looks quite strong and lays the ball off simply. He also looks to get in behind the defence whenever possible and whilst he isn’t quick, he’s pretty mobile. He was unlucky not to latch on to a few things in the box while when his best chance came after Cairney had picked up Fryatt’s lay-off, burst towards goal and laid the ball into his path, he just looked to have been on his heels a touch and couldn’t reach the pass. He seemed a bit frustrated at times that the ball wasn’t played longer, quicker or that when it was, it was nowhere near him. He looks like he’ll be a decent option once we learn his game a bit more. Fryatt was lively enough off the bench as was Jay Simpson. At the very least we seem to have some genuine options at the moment and the ability to change games and to change our system if required.

Steve Bruce seemed frustrated after the Hartlepool game that we play too much football and don’t get the ball into attacking positions quick enough. That worries me a little. I was proud of the way we played football last season and I could name two or three performances that were better than any I’ve ever seen from Hull City, even from our greatest team ever back in 2008. I’m worried that we’re ripping all that up and starting again at this stage of the season. I’ve nothing against Steve Bruce and I’m sure his words will be agreeable to a lot of supporters. I quite liked the continuity we had last season though and I believed in Nick Barmby’s way of playing. The Championship is going to be tougher than ever this season. There’s barely a poor team in the league and at least 18 clubs will fancy that they can make the play-offs. I have a nagging feeling that we could end up with a poorer standard of football, a similar goal return and a worse finishing position than last season.  Although given that pre-season is rarely a good form guide going into a new season, I remain fully behind Steve Bruce. I can’t shake those tiny seeds of doubt though. However hard I try.

Please feel free to leave a comment. No log-in required.

Donny Rovers 3 Hull City 1

After missing Rochdale because I’m a fair weather supporter, we followed The Tigers to Doncaster for the latest pre-season friendly. I’ve never seen City win at Donny and have even witnessed a couple of humbling defeats. My last visit for a pre-season friendly saw Damien Delaney receive a serious looking head injury which caused him to leave the pitch in an ambulance. He turned out to be fine which hopefully will be a good omen for Ben Amos. The Manchester United goalkeeper only signed for the Tigers officially today but suffered an injury in trying to stop the second Doncaster goal and after a lengthy stoppage, left the pitch on a stretcher. Hopefully it was precautionary but it didn’t look good.

The Tigers squad included ex-Norwich City and Celtic midfielder Mark Fotheringham playing as a trialist. Robert Koren and James Chester were missing, presumably rested, Abdoulaye Faye is still not fit to play and Matt Fryatt, Seyi Olofinjana, Liam Rosenior and Corry Evans are injured. Paul McShane has vanished. All that left the squad looking a little depleted. Steve Bruce decided to experiment with one up front. I’m not sure of the reason and it certainly goes against his previous comments. It wasn’t an experiment that worked very well.  (YouTube: Tigers warm-up)

Tigers: Amos; Dudgeon, Dawson, Bruce, Cooper; Aluko, Stewart, McKenna, Cairney, Fotheringham; Proschwitz.

City started the game very brightly and scored a deserved early goal. We moved the ball around neatly, Stewart and Aluko looked lively and we looked a threat for 15 minutes or so. Sone Aluko had already scraped the post with a deflected low shot when the Tigers went in front. Cairney skipped through the midfield and played the ball into the path of Stewart who’d switched to the right. He put a decent low ball into the box and Rob Jones, making his Donny debut, smacked it into his own net. It was so ridiculous, I thought it must have been Cairney who’d got on the end of it but it wasn’t [0-1]. The lead should have been doubled minutes later when Sone Aluko tricked a foul out of Husband in the box. Tom Cairney strode up to take the penalty and smashed the underside of the crossbar.

The Tigers dominated possession until half time but looked far less threatening after the penalty miss. Doncaster threatened when Robbie Blake latched onto an under-hit back pass before Liam Copper tackled him superbly while a free-kick floated to the back post almost caught out Ben Amos. He watched it well though and got down to make the save but couldn’t hold on to the ball and was perhaps a little relieved that Rob Jones clattered into him as he tried to retrieve the situation. At the other end Fotheringham nicked the ball in midfield and fed Proschwitz who got his left foot shot away but saw it blocked by a sliding Donny defender. It was a comfortable half for City with only the lively but unproductive Kyle Bennett causing any trouble. Proschwitz’ lack of involvement was worrying with City failing struggling to get anything into him and his involvement reduced to challenging in the air for poor balls out of defence (and losing).

City never really got going in a disjointed second half. Until the Doncaster equaliser, the Tigers dominated the ball again without creating a whole lot but once they scored, confidence flooded through the hosts and that combined with Hull City looking weaker with each substitution meant the outcome was inevitable. Paul McKenna won a free-kick which Nick Proschwitz put into orbit (YouTube: Proschwitz free kick) and then a lovely City move ended with Fotheringham dinking the ball in behind the right-back for Andy Dawson to charge onto and lash in a half volley that the keeper tipped over the bar. That was probably the visitor’s last chance of the game.

Doncaster equalised through Martin Woods who cut in from their right and hit a terrific left footed shot inside Ben Amos’ left hand post. It was woeful defending though. From the second Woods picked up the ball it was clear that he wanted to get the shot in and one after another the City defenders showed him further inside [1-1]. Aaron McLean and Jay Simpson (not Jamie Devitt Mr Stadium announcer) replaced Aluko and Stewart. Stewart had another quiet game but Aluko was impressive. He’s got plenty of pace, he moves well with the ball, he’s direct and he loves a shot. He’ll be a big favourite at the KC. The Tigers shape didn’t change which meant Proschwitz continued to plough a lonely furrow. Sonny Bradley replaced Alex Bruce but not before Bruce stuck a foot out at a Bennett cross to force a phenomenal save from Amos. Once Bruce went off, Donny really took control and Bradley, who I’m a big fan of, was dragged all over the place. We were ragged at the back and a second goal was inevitable. Kyle Bennett, who was just as lively in the second half but twice as effective, ran through the midfield (minus McKenna who’d swapped with Devitt) and slid the ball in to Hawley whose shot was saved by Amos only for Morgan-Smith to knock in the rebound [1-2]. Amos was injured while trying to reach the rebound and had to be replaced by Eldin Jakupovic.

Cullen and Townsend replaced Proschwitz and Dawson either side of Doncaster’s third goal. Bradley got himself the wrong side of Bennett but looked to have made a decent recovery tackle only for Michael Oliver to point to the spot. I think the linesman gave it and in a competitive match, Bradley would have walked. Woods did what Tom Cairney couldn’t in the first half and sealed a decent win for a patched up Donny [1-3]. On the final whistle a couple of people in the City end booed. Hello? It’s a friendly.

I’m not sure what Steve Bruce will take from the game. It wasn’t the sort of controlled 4-5-1 that Pearson and Barmby used to good effect last season; this was a poor 4-5-1 with the front man an isolated and frustrated figure. Rather than bringing a freshness to the team, each substitution made us weaker and weaker. Ben Amos had a good game in goal and I hope he recovers quickly from his injury. Dawson, Dudgeon, McKenna, Cairney and Stewart all gave their usual performance which is a positive for some but not others. Fotheringham was tidy and played one or two really good balls but isn’t any better than what we currently have and isn’t anywhere near good enough to replace Robert Koren if he decides to leave. Alex Bruce did well at centre half and although he lacks a bit of pace, did get himself into the right positions to avert danger. Liam Cooper had a fine defensive game but his distribution was wretched. He isn’t going to get a game ahead of Chester, Hobbs or Faye this season so hopefully the arrival of Bruce will allow Liam to go out and play a full season somewhere. He really needs the games because he continues to show real promise. I think Doncaster would be the perfect temporary home for him next season.

I’m not too worried about the performance as it is only pre-season and this was an experimental line-up. I’m worried by the number of injuries we’re picking up all of a sudden. Apart from long-term injuries to players prone to damage, we were lucky with injuries until March 2012 and since then we’ve had a run of niggly knocks. We had a settled side for most of last season but more injuries will lead to a high turnover of players and we may well suffer for it this season. I’m also a tad worried that we’re looking at guys like Mark Fotheringham who is a journeyman who never made the best of enormous talent when he had the chance and now never will.

The Tigers head to Hartlepool next. I’ll see them again against Norwich. If the likes of Rosenior and Fryatt aren’t back in action for that one, I’m going to get a little twitchy!

Please feel free to leave a comment. Google account is not necessary.

Grimsby Town 0 Hull City 0

The Tigers second trip over the Humber Bridge this week proved to be far less enjoyable than the first. It was the first time I’ve been to Blundell Park to see City. The last time I went I saw Grimsby play Sunderland and lose 0-4. A young Michael Bridges scored a hat-trick for a Sunderland side who were marching towards promotion. We arrived just in time for kick-off, i.e. literally with seconds to spare, and found the away end was playing host to a high-school production of Green Street. Credit to the costume lady, she’d done a great job sourcing all that knock-off Burberry on her budget.

I thought the police did a good job with the situation. They were present but restrained. If this lot had been at the G20 demonstrations, they’d be missing some teeth by now. Anyway, the football. With Amos, Hobbs, Rosenior, Dawson, McKenna, Olofinjana, Fryatt and new signing Abdoulaye Faye unavailable, the Tigers fielded about the best senior side they could manage:

Jakupovic; McShane, Dudgeon,   Chester, Cooper; Stewart, Devitt, Cairney, Koren ©; McLean, Simpson

With substitutions taking place throughout the second half (all subs used except Oxley) City finished the game :

Jakupovic; East, Townsend, Chester, Cooper; Bradley (for 30 seconds), McLean, Cairney, Koren; Cullen, Proschwitz

The first half was a bit of a non-event. There was some tidy football on display from both sides but chances were few and far between. City lacked any real penetration and failed to deliver from wide areas despite numerous chances. If it was up to the duo in the centre of midfield to dictate the tempo then it was hardly surprising that the Tigers game was slow and steady given that Cairney and Koren are both paid up members of the “pipe and slippers” club. No-one in black and amber appeared too keen to pick up an injury so the defensive tactic was press Grimsby until they cough up possession and start again which was reasonably effective.

The Mariners only chance of the half fell to Andy Cook who met Joe Colbeck’s cross but saw his header comfortably saved by Jakupovic. Colbeck was impressive for Grimsby and gave Joe Dudgeon something to think about the few times he was in possession. Despite having the larger share of possession and working the ball into good areas, City failed to create much more than a few half chances. Jay Simpson hit the side netting early on after latching onto Koren’s neat pass. Jamie Devitt hit a nice half-volley low and hard but saw it saved excellently by ‘keeper Fleming. Liam Cooper met a Koren corner with a super near post run but headed over. In the only moment of genuine quality in the half, Koren hit a terrific swerving, dipping shot from 25 yards that smashed the bar and flew over.

Jay Simpson showed good movement and pace again, Koren worked hard and was involved in the few moments of quality and the centre halves were untroubled. The rest of the outfield players were well below par. McLean was anonymous, Stewart is still struggling and hardly anything he tried came off. Devitt is what he is, Cairney looks good but doesn’t affect games enough and neither full-back ever looked likely to put a decent ball into the box.

Things improved a little after the break with the spate of substitutions at least bringing a little urgency into the Tigers play. We dominated for the most part but Grimsby had a good spell mid-way through the half and were unlucky not to score when Southwell met a good out-swinging corner and saw his header cleared off the line. The corner came about from Jakupovic coming for a ball he couldn’t get for the second time in the game. Half-time sub Conor Townsend impressed again. His movement is good, he looks for space and he loves to try and get a cross in. They weren’t really up to much but at least he’s trying. Jay Simpson forced a good save  from Fleming after collecting Cairney’s pass, turning sharply and shooting low and hard. Fleming is on trial at Grimsby and played against The Tigers in pre-season last year for Chesterfield. He had a really good game.

Cameron Stewart’s best moment of the half came next, he picked up the ball in his own half and ran 40 yards with it, out pacing two midfielders and leaving just Southwell between him and a run on goal. Southwell came across and blatantly took him out earning a bollocking from the referee and a few words from a rightly upset Stewart who could do without another injury. Simpson then went clean through against Fleming, drew the keeper and neatly dinked the ball over him. Unfortunately the dink had no power behind it whatsoever and three defenders beat the ball to the 6 yard line!

With about 15 minutes left Steve Bruce threw on Nick Proschwitz for his Tigers debut. The big German received a great welcome from the 600 or so City fans behind the goal he was attacking. He also heard his first chant in English football which was made up by a tuneless moron and sung by about 1% of the crowd, and half of them looked pretty embarrassed. The words to this future pop classic are:

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!! NICK PROSCHWITZ.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!! NICK PROSCHWITZ.”

I think perhaps the teeny-boppers should stick to amateur dramatics and leave the song writing to someone else? Oddly, that wasn’t even their worst song of the night. The other one was so horrific that my brain has refused to absorb it. Thank you brain.

It’s unfair to judge anyone on just 15 minutes but I think it’s safe to say that had Proschwitz been a donkey, 15 minutes would have been long enough to prove it. Fortunately, he looks a pretty good footballer. He didn’t have many touches but all were very good, he showed neat control, good movement and wasn’t afraid to have a shot. There were no further chances for City but may have been a penalty when Cameron Stewart was brought down on the edge of the box. It looked in to me and Stewart also thought it was but the ref, from a pretty poor position, said it was outside. Fortunately, it doesn’t really matter.

The game ended all square. It wasn’t particularly riveting but should be a decent boost to the home side who put up a good fight and look to have assembled a decent squad. It will also benefit them financially as all of the proceeds will go to their youth setup. It’s just a pity there weren’t more than 1500 of them to boost the coffers.

The game doesn’t tell us a whole lot about Hull City that we didn’t already know. Jay Simpson continued his decent pre-season. He definitely looks higher up the pecking order than Aaron McLean at the moment. We still can’t put a decent cross into the box and our set pieces are rubbish. It’s not a surprise that wide players are high on Steve Bruce’s agenda. If Robert Koren is looking to leave, this was a thoroughly professional performance.

I’m off to change my name to Danny Dyer by deed poll. A’wight.

Wanna be a Tiger? #2

A second look at some of the names being linked with a move to Hull City in the summer transfer window. Some are credible, some are not.

In updates from the first instalment The Tigers signed up German Striker Nick Proschwitz and will complete a loan move for Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Amos when he returns from their pre-season tour.
 
Brad Guzan re-signed at Aston Villa for three years while tenuously linked drugs cheat Paddy Kenny joined Leeds United. Following the signings of Amos and Eldin Jakupovic, Vito Mannone is no longer a target. Another rumoured target definitely not signing is Paul Coutts who has joined Derby County.

Before we get onto the rumours, it’s time for a one off special called…

PLEASE SAY YOU STILL WANNA BE A TIGER OR I’LL CRY!

Robert Koren (Midfelder)

The former captain of the Slovenian National team miraculously joined the Tigers in the summer of 2010 after being released by West Bromwich Albion. Quite how Nigel Pearson managed to attract Koren at a time when the club’s finances were dire, half the squad were let go and the other half would have been let go if anyone wanted them and the quality of our signings were limited to the likes of James Harper and Nolberto Solano, I’ll never know.

Koren did sign though and proved to be a crucial player once he bedded in playing initially from the left of midfield and then eventually behind the striker as the team was built around him. He chipped in with ten goals from midfield including crucial late winners against Watford and Leicester City. Koren’s importance to the Tigers was still up for debate until his late-season injury coincided with an abysmal run of form that cost City a play-off place. The choice of words is poor; it was no coincidence.

We initially feared that Koren’s contract was up this summer but it transpired that the Tigers had an option to extend it for a further year. What we didn’t know for sure until today s that his contract has a release clause of around half a million pounds that allows Koren to leave. He has several rumoured suitors including Premier League new boys Reading and Nigel Pearson’s Leicester City. Steve Bruce revealed earlier this week that he’s attempting to convince Koren to sign a new contract. The reasons for that are now obvious.

Losing Robert Koren could be catastrophic for Hull City. I’m not even sure where he fits into the team for the new season, with Steve Bruce likely to prefer a 4-4-2 system over his predecessor’s choice of playing one man up front with Koren behind. What I’m certain of is that whether it’s in the centre of midfield, as a second striker or (most likely) as a wide player, Steve Bruce would find a place for Koren because he’s a difference maker. I’m also certain that Leicester City with Robert Koren immediately make the jump from underachieving over-spenders to a team that will win promotion.

It will take three things to keep Robert Koren at Hull City. The first is a lack of interest from a Premier League. At his age, he can’t afford to turn down a guaranteed chance to play in the top flight again. The second is for the manager and the owner to convince him through their words and actions that the club are serious about winning promotion again. The third is money. City would have to match the money Koren could earn at Leicester City. This is where I have a dilemma. Over the past 18 months, the club has been run properly. The squad is made up of players who are on the way up. They respect each other, they work for each other and they know that they’re all valued the same and paid accordingly (apart from the leeches the Allams inherited). I’m not sure that the club should be ripping up that structure for Robert Koren or anyone else.

Reading Steve Bruce's interviews in the last day or two, I get the feeling that he isn't too hopeful. I think that if he felt Koren was going to sign a new contract, he would have kept it to himself but as that is looking unlikely he's made it the public. That said, Bruce may well just be sticking to his word and being open and honest with the supporters.

Ahmed Elmohamady (Winger)

The 24 year old Egyptian winger joined Sunderland from ENPPI in his home country last summer after a successful loan spell. Steve Bruce was the Sunderland manager who took him to the Stadium of Light for a fee of £2m. He can play anywhere on the right hand side, has good pace and crosses the ball well. “Elmo” has already won over 40 caps for Egypt. He has failed to hold down a regular spot at Sunderland under Martin O’Neill and Steve Bruce has confirmed his interest in taking. Sunderland would want at a seven figure fee to let him go permanently so a loan might suit City.

Credibility? Confirmed.
Likelihood? Only a possibility, he’s bound to have other offers.

David Meyler (Midfielder)

Young Irish midfielder whose career has been blighted by two cruciate knee ligament injuries, one fortunately less serious than the first. Roy Keane took him to Sunderland from his hometown club, Cork City, for £250,000. He’s been limited to just a handful of appearances for Sunderland which is a shame for such a talented player. It’s likely that Sunderland will send him out on loan to get games under his belt an Steve Bruce, who gave him his break at Sunderland, is very interested.

Credibility? Confirmed.
Likelihood? This one is a strong possibility.

Abdoulaye Faye (Defender)

Vastly experienced Seneglaese international defender is looking for his fifth club in England after his release by West Ham. The Hammers were the third club he’s played for under Sam Allardyce along with Bolton and Newcastle United. Faye also played an important part in establishing Stoke City in the Premier League, one of several astute signings by Tony Pulis. Despite being 34 years old, Faye s still fit and mobile and would give the Tigers an aerial presence that was missing at times last season as well as adding a bit of know how to some of the youthful quality we already have.

Credibility? Confirmed.
Likelihood? He’s had a medical and agreed terms. This one looks a go-er.

Ricardo Fuller (Striker)

Mobile, powerful and skilful Jamaican front man who’s spent most of his career in England. Suffered two serious knee injuries which mean he’ll never pass a medical and have probably stopped bigger clubs looking at him. Portsmouth eventually took a chance on him, one of Harry “Delboy” Redknapp’s deals, because of his goal return at Preston but he struggled at Pompey. Had a slightly better spell after following Redknapp to Southampton (for less than a tenth of the fee Pompey paid for him) and finally settled at Stoke where he won promotion to the Premier League and helped the club stay in the top flight three seasons in a row. In fact, Stoke looked certainties for relegation in their first PL season until Fuller gave Andy Griffin a slap against West Ham and it turned around their season. Or perhaps that was a coincidence.

Credibility? Already denied by Steve Bruce.
Likelihood? Highly improbable unless Steve Bruce is attempting to put us off the scent.

Paul Anderson (Winger)

A bright young winger available on a free transfer after seeing out his contract at Nottingham Forest. He was previously on the books at the KC Stadium after being released as a junior by Leicester. He left City in 2005 to join Liverpool in a swap deal for England U21 international John Welsh. Never threatened to break through at Anfield and after productive loan spells at Swansea and Forest, he moved to Nottingham permanently for £250,000. Anderson is a good footballer who has Championship pedigree but struggled for form and fitness last season. 

Credibility? Rumour denied by Steve Bruce.
Likelihood? Not going to happen.

Alex Bruce (Defender)

The Manager’s son is available on a free transfer after being released by Leeds United. He joined the Tigers on their training camp in Portugal and has made appearances in the opening pair of pre-season friendlies. While City are short on experienced defensive cover, there are better defenders available. Steve Bruce has said he’s wary of being accused of nepotism but it’s hard to see any other reason why City would take on Bruce Jr.


Credibility? He’s worn the kit!
Likelihood? A definite possibility.

Update...

Sone Aluko (Winger)

Another young English winger of Nigerian descent who has a single cap for the Super Eagles. Aluko came through the youth system of Birmingham City (where he was managed by one Steve Bruce) before joining Aberdeen, initially on loan. He impressed in the SPL for the Dons and was snapped up by Rangers at the end of his contract last summer. His impressive form continued at the declining Glasgow giants and he proved to be the shining light in a disastrous season. His brilliant individual goal in a 3-2 derby win over Celtic at Ibrox will go down in history as being the last great moment for the "old" Rangers. After Rangers liquidation, Aluko refused to transfer his registration to the new company and left as a free agent. Any signing will be the subject of some debate as the Scottish FA have so far refused to sanction the transfer of the registration of ex-Rangers players such as the three Stevens, Whittaker, Naismith and Davis.


Credibility? Do you believe the Hull Daily Mail?
Likelihood? As likely as Nigel Pearson trying to poach Robert Koren :(