In-form Wilks leads the way as Hull return to top of table
RUTHLESS Hull City put 10-man Accrington to the sword to return to the top of League One.
The Tigers took full advantage of league leaders Lincoln’s late postponement to leapfrog the Imps.
Mallik Wilks’s 12th goal of the season, new loanee Gavin Whyte’s first for the club and Josh Magennis’s penalty did the damage at the KCOM.
Cameron Burgess’s secondhalf sending off compounded Stanley’s woeful evening.
The Tigers started with the bit between their teeth and Wilks was a constant threat with his early effort going over the bar.
Grant McCann’s men got into good areas and the pressure told eight minutes before half-time as Wilks scored for the third game running. Keane Lewis-Potter got past his man on the edge of the box and found Wilks to fire beyond Nathan Baxter.
And it was almost two minutes later when Wilks was denied by Baxter after the ball fell kindly to him in the box. Jacob Greaves should have done better when he dragged his strike wide.
But Whyte was on hand to slot home the second just before the hour after Wilks was thwarted by Baxter following a fine ball over the top.
Visiting defender Burgess was sent off for pulling Greaves down inside the box with Irish international Magennis firing home from 12 yards with his first touch of the came with 23 minutes left.
Wilks almost added gloss late on after a fine team move but could only strike over the bar. Hull: Long; Coyle, Jones, Greaves, Elder; Docherty (Emmanuel, 82), Honeyman (Slater, 77), Smallwood (Flores, 77); Whyte (Crowley, 66), Lewis-Potter (Magennis, 66), Wilks. Unused substitutes: Ingram, McLoughlin. Accrington: Baxter; Sykes (Sama, 77), Hughes, Burgess; Nottingham, Butcher, Conneely, McConville (Roberts, 77), Pritchard (Fenlon, 77); Charles (Uwakwe, 82), Bishop (Russell, 82). Unused substitutes: Savin, Hughes, Barclay.
Referee: D Rock (Hertfordshire).