🔗 Share this article

Against a backdrop of freezing rain, flurries, and a biting breeze off the banks of the Humber Estuary, alongside a resolute home side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this presented all the ingredients of a difficult evening’s task for the visitors.

"We could have added to our tally but Hull are a good team and it was a difficult tie; I am very pleased with the display," he said. "This club is very special to me so it was great to get a positive welcome from the fans of fans. The attitude of the lads was excellent."

The Rosenior has this city close to his heart, considering part of his relatives hail from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Tigers. This positive association was extended with a magnificent display from his team, who ultimately strolled into the next round of the famous old competition.

Deadly Edge Seals Comfortable Win

Three days after surrendering a 2-0 lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about them going into this potentially tricky tie. The capacity Hull crowd evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the challenge perfectly.

Rosenior made alterations, making multiple of them to his XI. The tie might and maybe ought to have been settled earlier than it eventually was, with two Estêvão Willian and the forward guilty of spurning glorious chances to put their side in front in the opening period.

But, luckily for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He opened the deadlock with a spectacular distance effort, which proved to be the catalyst for his team to assume command of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had four, with Neto scoring three of them for a superb three-goal haul.

Delap's Redemption and Impact

The home side showed great spirit throughout, but the better chances always fell Chelsea’s way. Estêvão ought to have broken the deadlock when he went past keeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably firing over. The striker then had a comparable nightmare incident in front of goal against his former club.

He blocked a Phillips's kick which came back from the bar, and he started to run away believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the danger.

Delap had his head in his hands after that miss, but he was hugely influential from that point onward, registering three assists. The first was for the opening goal as his through ball teed up his teammate to score from range. Six minutes after the restart, it was 2-0 as the forward's set-piece went directly in through Phillips's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Focus Shifts

Seven minutes after the second goal, the tie was put beyond doubt as a magnificent dribble from Delap teed up Estêvão to tap into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then completed his hat-trick as Delap again played the crucial ball for the striker to calmly convert past a stranded goalkeeper.

By that stage, the work Hull had put in in the first half-hour had been forgotten. Their focus must now switch back to achieving a promotion to the Premier League under Sergej Jakirovic, who left out several first-choice individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we earned at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a very good situation in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the upcoming games this can be a positive example of how we should play."

Hull showed great effort to the final whistle, and they almost claimed a consolation when a substitute hit a post in injury time. But this was the Blues' night, and another encouraging step forward for their new manager at a place he knows intimately.

FA Cup History Look Promising

The result resulted in an ultimately routine night's work, and the cup competition signs are good from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three other times in this competition in the last decade and on each occasion, they have progressed to make the final. Much still done in that regard, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.