Frustration for City as Robins grab last-gasp leveller

Hull City 2 - 2 Bristol City

Sky Bet Championship

By Sam Hawcroft, Hull City correspondent

Returning former Hull City manager Nigel Pearson had the last laugh – or smile, at least – as the Tigers twice conceded their lead to fellow bottom-half strugglers Bristol City, who snatched a point from the jaws of defeat with just a few minutes of added time left to play.

It took just three minutes for City – the starting 11 unchanged from last week, and Tom Huddlestone returning to the bench – to open their account through an absolute peach of a goal from Ryan Longman. He latched on to a pass from Mallik Wilks about 20 yards out on the left, made a surging run into the box, evaded two defenders, and placed a curling right-footed shot just past the outstretched left arm of Bristol City keeper Daniel Bentley.

Things quietened down considerably after that, however. City looked reasonably in control, but there was little goalmouth action to speak of until the 24th minute when Sean McLoughlin did very well to stand his ground and hold off the threat of Antoine Semenyo, while at the other end, Keane Lewis-Potter saw his curling 25-yard effort comfortably held by Bentley.

Just after the half-hour mark, Chris Martin saw his shot blocked by Di’Shon Bernard. The resulting corner prompted an intervention from the referee to ensure it was placed within the line – something that players routinely play fast and loose with and are rarely taken to task for. When the kick was eventually taken, Martin headed over, but within moments it was back up the other end and Longman hit another sweet shot that went inches above the crossbar and the flailing Bentley.

In the 37th minute, City came agonisingly close to a second when Docherty’s cross from the byline was fumbled by Bentley, but the Robins keeper managed to redeem himself by blocking Wilks from close range. A few minutes later, Josh Magennis did well to wrestle possession just inside Bristol City’s half and release it to Docherty, whose dangerous-looking cross from the right only just drifted out of play.

Shortly after the restart, Docherty had the first shot for the Tigers, but his attempt went well wide, and at the other end, Andreas Weimann really should have done better for the Robins, slicing his shot wide of the left post from about 15 yards.

But this half, the early joy was all Bristol City’s, when the Tigers were undone by a set-piece, their achilles heel for much of this season. From a 54th-minute corner, Semenyo’s shot hit the post, and he made no mistake with the rebound, to the delight of the couple of coachloads of Robins fans behind the goal. It was a poor goal to concede for City, whose calm approach during the first half had at times been teetering on the edge of complacency. As heavy rain began to fall, and the Robins began to make regular in-roads into the Tigers’ half, regaining a sense of urgency was required.

This didn’t really come until the last 20 minutes or so, when substitutes Tom Eaves and Tyler Smith brought some much-needed energy; Smith’s flicked header just missed the target in the 77th minute. Then, just a minute later, the Tigers regained the lead. Eaves crossed from the right and the ball bounced a few times before it found Lewis-Potter, whose 12-yard shot was parried by Bentley – but the keeper couldn’t stop George Honeyman’s follow-up. Cue jubilation in the home stands.

It proved to be short-lived, though. Just as four minutes of added time were announced, Eaves earned an appreciative “Eaaaaves” cheer after nodding the ball away out of defence – it looked to have been a crucial moment as City strove to see out the victory – but moments later they were hit by a sucker punch from the Robins’ Matty James. Played in by Tomáš Kalas after a corner, James beat Nathan Baxter with a powerful shot from just outside the area – and killed the atmosphere in an instant.

Grant McCann described it as a “fair result”, and that it “felt a bit like a defeat”. The stunned fans, who streamed out of the MKM Stadium in near-silence, would no doubt agree – but the Tigers are still unbeaten in six games. And, in the grand scheme of things, there is a bigger story yet to be resolved, of course. McCann refused to be drawn on the potential takeover, which is fairly understandable – but from now until Boxing Day, it’ll be this that everyone else is talking about, not a point against Bristol City…