Roar strength as Eaves gives Hull bite they need to tear apart Blues
Eaves Grosicki Lewis-Potter
REECE BURKE believes teammate Tom Eaves has started to bare his teeth.
The burly striker, a free transfer from Gillingham, set the Tigers on their way by heading home just before halftime for his fourth goal of the season, giving them a platform to tear Blues to shreds after the break.
“Sometimes it takes a bit longer for some players,” said Hull defender Burke. “Tom has been working really hard in training. He’s a big lad, he’s strong and he showed he is very good at scoring headers – he uses his body very well.”
“We’ve been working on set-pieces in training, he got his run completely right. Sometimes when it’s a bit tight playing through the lines, a ball over the top isn’t a bad ball to the striker’s feet to hold up – in recent games he has been doing that very well.”
Eaves was given a standing ovation when replaced by Keane Lewis-Potter with 14 minutes to go and Hull 2-0 up.
The excellent Kamil Grosicki had doubled the lead just before the hour when he lifted Jarrod Bowen’s pass over keeper Connal Trueman.
Alvaro Gimenez had missed the visitors’ best chance just before Eaves departed, diverting Jefferson Montero’s cross wide.
Lewis-Potter, 18, showed the Blues striker how to do it late in the game when he capitalised on hesitant defending to fire in his third goal of the campaign. Hull have now won three in a row in front of their own fans and Burke said: “It’s important we get good home form. At the start of the season it was a bit up and down.”
Birmingham have only one win in nine, have slipped to 15th in the table and visit in-form Blackburn on Boxing Day. Head coach Pep Clotet said: “We have to see a reaction, we’ve seen a lot of setbacks this season, the team always has the ability to bounce back and get us back on track.”
HULL:
Ref: Anthony Backhouse Att: 11,334
BIRMINGHAM:
MOTM
KAMIL GROSICKI (HULL)