Eurosport - Sat, 13 Sep 16:30:00 2008
Marlon King's brace gave Hull a richly-deserved 2-1 victory at St James' Park, and compounded a miserable week for managerless Newcastle United, who had Danny Gurthrie sent off late on.
King fired home from the penalty spot to put Phil Brown's side ahead on the half-hour mark and the striker secured all three points with a fine finish early in the second half.
Xisco's 82nd-minute strike gave Newcastle hope, but it proved too little, too late and Hull held on to achieve their first away win in the Premier League.
It was an outcome that did little to pacify protesting Newcastle fans, who paraded banners and relentlessly chanted for the removal of chairman Mike Ashley and the reinstatement of Kevin Keegan - who resigned last week in protest of the way the club was being run.
Ashley was conspicuous by his absence in the stands, as were the members of the Toon Army who chose to boycott the match.
Initially, it appeared they may have missed their side in full flow. Newcastle started purposefully and for the opening quarter of the match a straightforward home win looked likely.
But with Shola Ameobi occupied primarily on the left flank and Michael Owen frequently dropping deep and ghosting out to the right to receive possession, the home side lacked focus going forward.
All too often attacks broke down due to a lack of bodies centrally, and Hull had little trouble in policing their lines - coping comfortably with wave upon wave of toothless drives forward.
On the occasion Newcastle's midfield did get up in support, they looked dangerous. Guthrie should have done better after timing his run to meet Geremi's right-wing cross and Xisco saw a powerful header fly over the bar early on.
Owen was then denied from point-blank range by a breathtaking save from Boaz Myhill, who dived sharply to his right to push the striker's header away.
Hull were not without attacking intent, however, and in Hungarian Peter Halmosi had a forward capable of seriously testing Newcastle's suspect defence.
It was Halmosi who did the damage shortly after the half-hour mark, bursting into the box and drawing a naive challenge from Nicky Butt, which resulted in the award of a penalty to the visitors.
King stepped up to strike a low shot to Shay Given's right, and though the Irishman guessed correctly he could only push the ball against the post and in.
With the second half came a more confident approach from Hull, who suddenly found the belief they lacked early on. Halmosi tormented the Newcastle back four, and the more they pushed for the equaliser the more susceptible they become to the breakaway.
Ten minutes in, Hull got their second. King was found in acres of space and he eased forward before checking inside Charles N'Zogbia and curling a fine shot away from Given's dive.
Newcastle threw everything into getting back into the match, but all too often failed to find the final ball and the frustration mounted.
The home side looked to have fallen further behind on 67 minutes, but Michael Turner's powerful header was disallowed for a push in the six-yard box.
As the spectators began to leave St James' park in disgust, however, Newcastle found a lifeline. N'Zogbia cut inside and struck a low shot against the foot of the post, and Xisco was on hand to tap home a simple rebound.
The substitute had a chance to double his tally and bring Newcastle level with three minutes remaining, but his header sailed wide.
Hull saw out the remainder in relative comfort, and as frustrations grew Gurthrie kicked out wildly at Craig Fagan as the forward attempted to shield the ball deep in his own half.
It was a transparent moment of petulance and one that rightly brought a straight red card for the midfielder, but it served to reflect rising tensions in the Northeast that will surely cue changes at the club sooner rather than later. |
發表於 2008-9-14 02:14 AM
| 