PLENTY TO PLAY FOR City have time for resurgent finale season deserves
TIGERS SHOULD NOT LET CAMPAIGN FADE AWAY INTO DAMP SQUIB
thoughts have not begun to drift on the back of this current international break.
The incentive would also be there to find home wins against Reading and Wigan, two sides the Tigers would expect to beat.
And to still be on the coat-tails of the top six with just a handful of games remaining would underline just how far this side has progressed.
To muddle through these final weeks would be a shame.
This, lest we forget, is a campaign that had its objectives achieved when beating Birmingham City at the start of this month.
That was when City surpassed the Class of 2017-18 and also the moment that racked up a half century of points with 11 games to spare.
Mission accomplished at a canter.
To take a seat, kick back and watch the final weeks pass by after achieving so much would not be a finale befitting the revival that unfolded through December and January.
A sensible aim is for City to target a top-half finish and see where that takes them.
Brentford and Swansea, both with their games in hand, will hope to make moves from below the Tigers’ current standing of 12th, but collecting three or four wins from these last eight games could well be enough to finish above the halfway marker.
The quicker they come, the longer this season can keep supporters engaged. No chance can just about become an outside chance again.
If this season takes on an enduring appeal it is because fans were reminded, albeit briefly, that there is fun to be had following your team.
Those wins away to Leeds United and at home to Bolton Wanderers and Sheffield Wednesday were an escape from the dark clouds that have so often hung heavy over the KCOM Stadium.
Only the naive will predict their return can be avoided in a summer of cost-cutting but the next six weeks can still bring a temporary distraction to the seemingly inevitable. Although few will be prepared to argue with those bookmakers’ odds, there is more at stake than just that top-six finish being coveted by so many.