Snodgrass stuns Saints to earn Hull some respite
Robert Snodgrass emerged from the bench to transform Hull’s fortunes and inspire a first win since August.
In scoring the equaliser and providing the delivery for captain Michael Dawson’ s winner during a heady two-minute spell just after the hour, Snodgrass reaffirmed himself as Hull’s talisman in the fight against relegation while also proving himself ready for Scotland’s World Cup qualifier at Wembley.
Hull’s top scorer was not deemed fit enough to start against europa League challengers Southampton following an ankle problem, but two freakish injuries forced manager Mike Phelan’s hand with just a quarter of the contest gone as forwards Abel Hernandez and Will Keane hobbled off with groin and knee problems.
‘Most clubs have two or three players who can produce something that’s a bit different. He’s one of them,’ said a beaming Phelan, following his first victory since being appointed as permanent boss.
‘At the start of the game he wasn’t ready. thirty minutes would have been reasonable for him but he managed to find what’s required and showed his quality.’
Hull had not yet troubled Fraser Forster when Sam Clucas created their equaliser with a piece of opportunism from a throw-in.
Working a one-two with Mason on the left, he surged to the byline and delivered a low cross to which the unmarked Snodgrass applied a clinical finish.
then, with Southampton shocked that their well-deserved advantage had been erased, Snodgrass arrowed a free- kick into their penalty area that Dawson glanced into the top corner.
It was the second week running that Dawson had contributed the winning goal, only this time it was at the right end from Hull’s point of view, following the gift given to Watford eight days earlier.
For the opening hour, it appeared Hull were to be condemned to their seventh straight league defeat, and their worst run in 36 years, by a player who has made a habit of coming back to haunt them.
Charlie Austin, who agreed to join Hull in a £4.5million deal three years ago only for a medical to scupper the deal, made it three goals in as many league visits since by sending David Marshall the wrong way with a fifth-minute penalty after Maya Yoshida’s burst into the area was crudely ended by Curtis Davies.
Austin’s fifth goal in seven games was the ideal start for Southampton, who had shown no adverse effects to competing on two fronts this season. In fact, Claude Puel was able to field his strongest possible XI, recalling five players rested for thursday night’s win over Inter Milan.
Yet they lost their record of not losing after european engagements against a backdrop of apathy as Hull registered a new low top-flight crowd for the second Premier League match in succession. other than the obligatory chants against the Allam family ownership, there was little animation from the sparsely populated stands until a knee-high, studs-up challenge by Dusan tadic on ryan Mason that could easily have resulted in a red rather than yellow card.
they were roused again after the break by Snodgrass’s opener, 10 minutes after Virgil van Dijk looped a header on to the crossbar.
With something to hang on to, a Hull defence that shipped 20 goals in its previous six league outings remained unbreached.
Austin was twice denied by splendid Marshall saves and Clucas cleared off the line to add Hull’s name to those of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United, the only sides to beat Puel’s Southampton.
‘When you win a game like Inter and you come back to the league against a team with good preparation, with one game a week, it’s important to keep concentration and a good attitude,’ said Puel.
‘but it is always difficult and I think we learn for the future.’