Sean McLoughlin impresses as Hull City concede late on and have to settle for a point against Bristol City

Hull City extended their unbeaten run to six games following their 2-2 draw with Nigel Pearson’s Bristol City. 

It was a case of a nasty sting in the tale for the Humberside club as they surrendered their 2-1 lead in the 92nd minute through Matty James’ fine finish at the death.

Having failed to record their third straight home win on the bounce, Grant McCann admitted during his post-match press conference that the result had felt more like a defeat than a point. To concede so late on was a sickener for McCann’s men, who had done well to get their noses back in front after Antoine Semenyo had equalised for the Robins.

With little between the sides, George Honeyman emphatic finish put the hosts ahead on 79 minutes. There only appeared to be one winner going into injury-time, particularly as Randell Williams had just failed to punish the Robins in a last-minute breakaway.

Whilst it wasn’t Hull’s best performance of the season, those who had not quite been at their usual levels in recent weeks, stepped up to the plate to ensure the Tigers would hold onto the win.

Disappointingly, they couldn’t hold out and having conceded another goal from a set-piece, the flimsiness of the hosts’ defence in vital moments will be of some concern to McCann having tightened up at the back in their unbeaten run.

“I am a bit disappointed. It was a good response from us from conceding in the second half to get the second goal. We are gutted in there to concede so late in the game.

“It feels a bit like a defeat, truth be told. But we have to understand where we are at this moment in time and it has been a good response by this group in the last six games.”

With Bristol City forward Antoine Semenyo causing Hull a number of problems with his direct running from deep, it was the Tigers’ centre-half Sean McLoughlin that caught the eye for the home side. 

The Irishman, who has had to remain patient in getting an opportunity in Hull’s backline, had an exceptional game as the middle central defender in a back three. McLoughlin’s ability to read the game was certainly needed as Hull were uncharacteristically sloppy on the ball coming out of defence as he helped his teammates out of a number of self-inflicted pickles.

Whilst Jacob Greaves and Di’Shon Bernard have been taking the plaudits for their performances in recent weeks, McLoughlin has certainly gone under the radar. Against the Robins, the 25-year-old demonstrated that he is very much finding his feet in the Championship. 

Commanding in the air, he held the Tigers backline together at times with some superb tackling. In one moment just before half-time, McLoughlin had the crowd on his feet as he denied Semenyo a glorious opportunity with some stout defending.

As the Bristol City forward skipped past a couple of Hull challenges, he found himself bearing down on goal with just one man to beat. With McLoughlin seemingly caught on his heels, the defender managed to stick out a trailing leg to deny the visitors a clear goalscoring opportunity. 

His positional sense was once more effective in the second period as he mopped up second balls and won the majority of his aerial duels. Now enjoying a run in the side, McLoughlin spoke post-match about the challenge ahead to maintain his form.

“It helps when the results are going your way and you’re in the team. It always looks a bit better. I’m just enjoying getting the game time at the minute.

“Hopefully I can step up another level and show a bit of consistency and give the manager a problem when he’s selecting the team.

“I’m in the team now, the aim is to stay in it for the rest of the season. It’s down to me how I perform on the pitch and in training.”

While scoring two goals at home should have been enough to win the game, Hull’s strikers are finding goals hard to come by in the second-tier. Both Josh Magennis and Mallik Wilks both broke the 20-goal barrier last season in League One but they are currently struggling to penetrate Championship defences. 

Having been the Tigers’ top scorer in the last campaign, Wilks, in particular, looks short on confidence at the moment. He barely troubled the Bristol City goal apart from a speculative overhead kick that floated harmlessly over the bar.

He was a little unfortunate that David Bentley made an excellent recovery from a mistake in the first half. The Robins’ goalkeeper spilt Ryan Longman’s cross in the six-yard box, but as the ball dropped to Wilks, Bentley recovered to smother his effort.

Apart from those moments, Wilks didn’t have any further chances and was careless in possession on a number of occasions. Often reacting to the play going on around him rather than being on the front foot, he appears to be struggling as a direct frontman.

Last season, Hull’s number seven played more on the right-hand side of a three-pronged attack and the ability to suck defenders in and cut infields onto his preferred left foot has been more restricted from a central position. 

With a double change up top for Hull on 70 minutes, both Tom Eaves and Tyler Smith made a notable difference and provided a greater threat up top.

Eaves, in particular, did well to play his part in Honeyman’s goal with some good movement and initial cross in the build-up but his aerial ability inside his own box led to notable contributions for the team also.

Tyler Smith’s eager running certainly posed the Robins’ centre-halves something new to think about having been fairly untroubled for the previous 70 minutes. The striker’s department will be given some thought no doubt by McCann in the looming January transfer window.

Hull will be looking to score more goals in order to secure Championship status and are currently lacking a striker who is proven at this level. Of course, trying to pick the players up in January won’t be without its challenges particularly cost-wise, but if the Tigers’ takeover finally goes through, there may be scope for money to be spent.

Given the recent run, there is certainly a great deal to be positive about and the emergence of Ryan Longman has been a huge plus for McCann. Having got over injuries, he’s had a run of games where he is now looking all the stronger for it.

With players getting regular minutes, Hull are certainly looking like a more stable outfit and showing that they can more than hold their own. They’ll be desperately disappointed not to have picked up another three points but it’s a sign of how far they have travelled from early November with a draw against an established Championship side leading to frustration.

With Nottingham Forest away from home next weekend, the Reds will pose the Tigers with a real test. Forest’s newfound stubbornness in defence and the attack consisting of Philip Zinkernagel, Lewis Grabban and Brennan Johnson will be a tough challenge for Hull but another challenge that McCann’s side will no doubt be looking ahead to.

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