Hull City have moved eight points clear of the relegation zone after they recorded a 2-0 win over West Bromwich Albion.
The Tigers took the lead on 32 minutes after Liam Rosenior headed home after a Nikica Jelavic penalty was saved by Ben Foster, and that advantage was doubled six minutes later through Baggies old boy Shane Long.
The second half was a one-sided affair in which Hull came close to extending their lead on several occasions, but manager Steve Bruce will be delighted to see his side extend the gap between themselves and the bottom three.
Read below to see how the action unfolded at the KC Stadium.
Hello, and welcome to Sports Mole's coverage of the match in the Premier League between Hull City and West Bromwich Albion.
We are reaching that time of the season where every fixture has something riding on it, and this match is no different. Hull have surprised a lot of people on their return to the Premier League, but a couple of defeats has seen them fall back towards the drop zone. As for West Brom, they were one of the favourites for relegation this time last week but three points against Swansea City will have them approaching the game at the KC Stadium in confident mood.
The team news is in from Hull. Full details coming right up.
HULL CITY XI: McGregor, Rosenior, Davies, Chester, Elmohamady; Meyler, Huddlestone, Livermore, Jelavic, Long, Aluko
HULL CITY SUBSTITUTES: Harper, Bruce, Figueroa, Koren, Fryatt, Quinn, Sagbo
That's a pretty attack-minded starting lineup named by Steve Bruce, isn't it? Hull have made just one alteration from their defeat to Manchester City, with Sone Aluko coming in to replace Maynor Figueroa.
WEST BROMWICH ALBION XI: Foster, Reid, McAuley, Dawson, Ridgewell, Morrison, Mulumbu, Dorrans, Sessegnon, Anichebe, Thievy
WEST BROMWICH ALBION SUBSTITUTES: Myhill, D.Daniels, O'Neil, Gera, Vydra, Berahino, Sinclair
As expected, Pepe Mel keeps changes to a minimum, with the sole change for the Baggies being striker Thievy Bifouma replacing defender Jonas Olsson.. It's a bold move from Mel who, like his opposite number, has opted for three in attack.
Before we go any further, I should bring you an update of the match between Chelsea and Arsenal at Stamford Bridge. The Blues have scored two in as many minutes to move into a 6-0 lead! Nice way for Arsene Wenger to celebrate his 1000th game. You can follow the remainder of the game by clicking here.
Today's encounter will see Hull City striker Shane Long come face-to-face with his former club for the first time since his departure from the Baggies. It was rumoured at the time that Long had been unhappy at The Hawthorns for some time so I'm sure that the desire is there for him to make an impact against his ex employers.
Of course, Long isn't the only player facing his former club. Curtis Davies made 73 appearances for West Brom between 2005 and 2008 as he began to make a name for himself in English football, while on the bench, Robert Koren and Boaz Myhill will be renewing acquaintances with old friends.
West Brom haven't been too impressive on their travels during this campaign, but they have an impressive recent record against the Tigers. Pepe Mel's side have won just two away games all season, but in their last four visits to Hull, they have been successful on three occasions. Will they make it four in five later on this afternoon?
West Brom looked lethargic in attack for much of their fixture at the Liberty Stadium, so the inclusion of Thievy Bifouma could be one that adds an extra sharpness going forward. The Frenchman has only netted once in four games since his arrival in England, but he could be a useful outlet throughout the 90 minutes.
PREDICTION! My initial thoughts on this game was that there wouldn't be many goals, but the starting lineups selected by both managers suggests otherwise. Hull will likely look to seize the initiative, but I fancy West Brom to strike on the break and cause a minor surprise at the KC Stadium. 3-1 to West Brom.
We are only 10 minutes away from kickoff at the KC Stadium, and the five other Premier League fixtures that begin at 3pm. As ever, we have coverage of every game, so if this game isn't to your liking, you can locate the other commentaries in the 'live scores' section of Sports Mole
We are also showcasing our new vidiprinter function, which can be found at the bottom of the page. That will bring you all the goals as they go in around Europe. Pretty good, huh?!
The two teams are making their way out onto the superb playing surface at the KC Stadium. We will be underway in just a few minutes.
The pre-match pleasantries have been completed. It will be West Brom to get us underway. Chris Foy is today's referee.
Hull are soon onto the offensive, but a ball in from the right is easily claimed by Baggies stopper Ben Foster.
SHOT! Did you see Stephane Sessegnon's goal against Swansea last weekend? Well, he has very nearly just repeated the feat here. He cut in sharply onto his right foot before driving the ball inches over the crossbar.
Thievy appears to be on a one-man mission to make his presence known amongst the Hull players. Two have had to receive treatment in the space of a minute.
After that initial charge from the home side in the opening 60 seconds, it's been all West Brom, who are playing the ball around nicely in the Hull half. Has Pepe Mel finally got his message across on the training ground?
I will try to keep you updated with news from around the bottom end of the table as we go on this afternoon, and the first news that I'm going to bring you is that Cardiff City have taken the lead against Liverpool! That would be a shocker for the Reds, but it's still early days.
Curtis Davies is limping heavily for Hull. He appears to have taken a knock to his thigh. It would be a massive blow to the home side if he was forced to leave the action.
SHOT! Maybe that knock has cleared up? A corner is swung in for Hull and Curtis Davies connects with an excellent volley, but his effort is deflected away from goal. That looked to be heading into the far corner. More news from the Cardiff City Stadium - Liverpool have equalised through Luis Suarez.
SHOT! Super save from Allan McGregor, who is forced into action to tip away a stinging volley from Graham Dorrans.
That's a shocking touch from Nikica Jelavic. He only had to divert the ball through to Shane Long, but the pass was far too heavy and the Baggies survive.
Norwich City have taken the lead against Sunderland. That's a big goal for Chris Hughton, who always seems to be under pressure to keep his job at Carrow Road.
CHANCE! David Meyler has missed a huge opportunity to give Hull the lead. A corner was whipped to the back post, but the midfielder could only send his free header from six yards wide of the post. Steve Bruce is not too impressed.
PENALTY TO HULL CITY!
GOAL! Hull City 1-0 West Bromwich Albion (Rosenior)
Right, where to start? Hull City win a penalty when Shane Long falls under a challenge from Gareth McAuley, but it looks a harsh decision. Long appears to trip himself up. From the resulting spot-kick, Nikica Jelavic saw his penalty saved by Ben Foster but Liam Rosenior was on hand to head the rebound into the net.
The West Brom supporters are booing Shane Long. I'm with them on this one - the referee was made a mistake.
GOAL! Hull City 2-0 West Bromwich Albion (Long)
It just had to be him, didn't it? Shane Long nets against his former club after firing a volley across Ben Foster from eight yards after meeting a knockdown from inside the penalty area.
West Brom haven't settled for half time just yet. They are continuing to look for a way back into the match before the break, but they need to be careful not to concede a game-losing third in the next few minutes.
There will be two minutes of added-on time.
HALF TIME: Hull City 2-0 West Bromwich Albion
Chris Foy blows the half-time whistle at the KC Stadium where Hull City hold a 2-0 advantage over West Bromwich Albion. The visitors can count themselves unfortunate to be two goals behind, but the Tigers have capitalised on a huge moments of fortune that have come their way.
How do the stats read after that opening 45 minutes? West Brom have had more shots on goal and the greater amount of possession, but unfortunately, that all counts for nothing at the moment. As it stands at half time, Hull are moving seven points clear of the drop zone, while West Brom will be just two points away from falling into 18th spot. Plenty of time for things to change though...
I wonder if Pepe Mel will act proactively and make an immediate alteration. Despite the scoreline, he won't be too displeased with how his team have performed, but they need to find a quick way back into this encounter. They will take heart from last week's second-half display, and a goal in the first 15 minutes after the break would give a different complexion to this match.
The two teams have made it back out onto the pitch to the sound of 'Eye of the Tiger'. We are back underway.
Thievy Bifouma nearly latches onto a flick on in the box but he is quickly pressurised by the Hull backline and the chance soon comes and goes.
OUCH! Ouch, double ouch and triple ouch! Nikica Jelavic has drilled an half-volley towards goal, but Gareth McAuley, who was no more than two yards away from the ball, has taken one flush in the face. It completely pole-axed him, but fortunately, he is back on his feet. That was horrific.
CHANCE! Nikica Jelavic comes a yard away from making it 3-0 to Hull. Sone Aluko did well down the right-hand side before firing the ball into the middle for Jelavic, who saw his volley just miss the near corner.
CHANCE Liam Rosenior keeps Hull's two-goal advantage intact with a header off the line from a Victor Anichebe header. It's been a bright start to the second half for both sides.
It sounds a crazy game at the Cardiff City Stadium! Liverpool have fought from being twice to move into a 3-2 lead, with Martin Skrtel netting twice. Elsewhere, it looks like game over at the Etihad Stadium, with Yaya Toure scoring a second penalty to give Manchester City a 2-0 lead over Fulham.
BOOKING! Sone Aluko goes into the book for Hull after sliding in late on Stephane Sessegnon.
SUBSTITUTION! Robert Koren has been introduced into the action to replace Sone Aluko. Generous applause from both sets of supporters after Koren enjoyed a successful spell at The Hawthorns before his departure.
Luis Suarez has netted his second and Liverpool's fourth at Cardiff. Both Hull and West Brom will be delighted with that development.
With time running out, it's all becoming a little rushed for West Brom and Hull are looking increasingly threatening on the break, and it leads to a Hull chance...
WOODWORK! Hull come so, so close to a third! A breakaway concludes with the ball finding Shane Long, who takes a touch to his right before whipping a fantastic curling effort towards goal, but the ball ricochets off the top of the post. That would have sealed the three points.
Should that have been a penalty for West Brom? The ball was fired into James Morrison, who turned sharply in the corner of the box before being felled by James Chester. I've seen them given.
The rain is hammering down at the KC Stadium!
Hull are playing some lovely stuff but they can't create a clear opportunity that could result in a third. Tom Huddlestone is having a growing influence on the game in the middle of the park.
This doesn't look good for Shane Long. The Irishman has gone down clutching his leg after attempting to control a high ball. He looks to have tweaked a muscle, or perhaps something worse. He will be replaced by Stephen Quinn.
Scott Sinclair has been thrown on by Pepe Mel as his side desperately look to find a way back into this encounter. They haven't had much joy in the attacking third over the past 10 minutes.
The Baggies are having a bit of possession down the right-hand side but Hull have packed their defence and it looks difficult for the visitors to try to find a way through. Eventually, they concede a free kick and the pressure is off.
Saido Berahino picks up the ball on the left, but despite making it obvious that he was looking to find the far corner, he drags his shot and Allan McGregor saves with ease.
This is all but over as a contest. The Hull fans are jubilant and the West Brom supporters are...well...probably considering making an early exit.
There will be three extra minutes. Hull currently have a free kick in their own half.
FULL TIME: Hull City 2-0 West Bromwich Albion
The full-time whistle goes at the KC Stadium and Hull City have secured a crucial three points against West Bromwich Albion. West Brom could argue that they didn't deserve to be behind after their first-half performance but they offered nothing in the second half and Hull are full value for their success.
The damage was done in the first half with two goals in six minutes, and although Hull wasted numerous opportunities after the break, they never looked in danger of allowing the Baggies a way back into the match.
Hull move up one place to 12th in the Premier League table, eight points clear of the drop zone, while West Brom slip one spot to 17th, although they remain three points clear of the teams currently facing relegation.
That will be all from Sports Mole for this match. Thank you for joining us this afternoon, and we hope that you stick around for all of the reaction to today's matches which will be coming up throughout the evening. Goodbye for now.
Written by
Darren Plant
Darren Plant
