FOOTBALL

HULL CITY HAPPY TO SIT IT OUT IN BULL-RING

Joker Jimmy Bullard re-enacts Phil Brown's penalty area rant

Sunday November 29,2009

By John Richardson

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Man City 1 Hull City 1

HULL City’s players endured another penalty box rollicking at Eastlands – this time from their own penalty king Jimmy Bullard.

Manager Phil Brown had famously given his under-performing stars the third degree in full view of the Hull fans at half-time during their 5-1 mauling 11 months ago.

This time trailing to a Shaun Wright-Phillips they were awarded a penalty with nine minutes to go after Kolo Toure was adjudged to have pulled down substitute Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink.

Up stepped Bullard to blast past Shay Given and then conduct an impromptu repeat of Brown’s party piece.

Waving his fists in mock anger he re-enacted Brown’s action, much to the amusement of the Hull manager who watched from the touchline.

Manchester City boss Mark Hughes’ high-wire act had shredded Eastlands nerves and a club record seventh consecutive draw once again placed a strait-jacket on City’s ambitions of gaining membership of the Premier League’s top four.

Yesterday Hughes sent in the cavalry but too often Robinho, Carlos Tevez, Emmanuel Adebayor and company resembled the charge of the Light Brigade, chasing hopeless causes.

Playing without a safety net can lead to some anxious moments if you don’t take your chances.

City fashioned the majority but Hull had an effort cleared off the line and at 1-0 were always in with a chance of causing a shock.

Brown’s side deservedly regained lost pride following that caning the last time they were here.

And just in case anyone had forgotten that incident, there it was again – Brown’s amazing penalty area half-time rant at his players was replayed in full on the giant screen before kick-off.

The Boxing Day charade will forever be remembered as the day the Hull manager lost it – and maybe lost some of the players as well – the Tigers only just clung on to their Premier League status in May.

This season, especially following chairman Adam Pearson’s return to the club it’s a lesser-stated Brown in charge. He’s even ditched the state-of-the-art mouth and earpiece or McDonalds head-gear, depending on your view.

There are no gimmicks now in this humbler Humberside era, but still plenty of work to do if this wasn’t going to be a tasty takeaway for the City millionaires.

Robinho was back after a three month absence, Tevez started in a side geared for one thing only – to attack. But without Gareth Barry and only Nigel de Jong supplying the muscle in midfield, there was still a vulnerability when City didn’t have possession.

The star-studded attack had only offered flashes of its potential in a frustrating opening for the ambitious multi-millionaires until Wright-Phillips struck in added time in the first half.

Stephen Ireland had flicked over the bar, Robinho had twice gone near – his best effort a low curler which had fizzed past the post – while Tevez had wasted the best opportunity by firing weakly at Matt Duke with only the keeper to beat.

A rare, flowing move ended with Wright-Phillips finding the side of net.

All was forgiven before manager Mark Hughes had chance to conduct an inquest into some sloppy finishing.

Tevez made ground, found Wright-Phillips who jinked goalwards in typical buccaneering style evading one challenge and firing past Duke with the help of Anthony Gardner’s diving head.