National
Four-goal salvo sends Hull to Wembley
Hull City 4 Watford 1 (Hull win 6-1 on aggregate)
GOALS from Nick Barmby, Caleb
Folan, Richard Garcia and
Nathan Doyle helped Hull reach
Wembley for the first time in the
club's 104-year history and set up
a Coca-Cola Championship playoff
final clash against Bristol
City on May 24.
Barmby cancelled out Darius
Henderson's opener as Watford
briefly threatened a stirring
comeback in the semi-final second
leg at a packed KC Stadium
before succumbing to a convincing
aggregate defeat.
Substitute Folan climbed off
the bench to add his side's second
after former England international
Barmby had notched his
second goal against Adrian
Boothroyd's side in the space of
four days.
Garcia and Doyle then grabbed
a goal apiece late on as Hull
romped to victory to spark a
pitch invasion at the full-time
whistle.
Tigers boss Phil Brown will
take the majority of the plaudits
after guiding a club seemingly in
freefall when he took charge in
December 2006 to safety last season
and now to within one game
of securing promotion to the Barclays
Premier League.
Perhaps even more poignant is
the fact it was two Hull-born
players, Barmby and Dean Windass,
who scored the goals over
the two legs that in the end sent
their hometown club to Wembley.
As for Watford and boss
Boothroyd, they are left to reflect
on a run of one win from 16
games which scuppered any
hopes of an immediate top-flight
return.
Despite starting the evening
with the comfort of a two-goal
cushion following a convincing 2-
0 win in the first leg on Sunday,
Hull were poor early on.
Boothroyd's boys needed an
early goal if they had any hope
of turning the tie around and it
duly arrived after 12 minutes,
with Henderson exchanging a series
of intricate passes with Jobi
McAnuff after a scramble on the
edge of the penalty area before
firing clinically past Boaz Myhill.
But in the 43rd minute the
hosts were level as Garcia's header
saw Barmby bundle the ball
over the line.
Folan effectively ended the
game as a contest 20 minutes
from time as he stooped unmarked
to head home Sam Ricketts'
cross.
And the Tigers finished with a
flourish as Garcia slotted home
from 14 yards after 88 minutes,
before substitute Doyle's deflected
effort from 12 yards completed
the scoring.
8:56am Thursday 15th May 2008
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