Tigers here for televised game

Taylor left Gillingham after they had won the play offs and went on to manage Leicester, for whom he signed Ade Akinbiyi, and Brighton before arriving at Hull three years ago when they were playing their football in what is now League Two at their old Boothferry Park ground.

They have won promotions in successive seasons, finishing as runners up on both occasions to Doncaster and Luton respectively, and have settled into the Championship well enough and are currently just in the top half of the league with 18 points from their 15 games.

They have benefited from the investment over the past few seasons of chairman Adam Pearson and that has allowed them to bring in players on a more regular basis than their opponents.

Following promotion at the end of last season Taylor has brought in six new players on permanent deals along with another couple who are currently at Hull on loan. He’d made three signings by the end of May with the arrivals of Curtis Woodhouse, the former Sheffield United and Birmingham midfielder, from Peterborough, Keith Andrews from Wolves and a player he had tried to sign a year earlier Steve McPhee. He was then with Port Vale but played his football last season with Beira Mar.

June saw two free transfers added, Mark Lynch from Sunderland and Charlton’s Sergio Leite. Lynch had been with Sunderland for just a year after signing from Manchester United but had failed to make an impact whilst Portuguese goalkeeper Leite has been signed as cover. The last pre-season signing was Danny Coles who cost £200,000 from Bristol City where the 24 year-old defender had spent all of his career.

Since the start of the season two loan players have been added from Premiership clubs. Before the window closed Taylor took his England Under-21 player John Welsh from Liverpool and despite interest from other clubs, including the Clarets, he signed Sunderland striker Chris Brown who started the season in the Wearsiders’ Premiership side.

They have started the season well enough and have recovered from a run of three successive defeats in mid-September. Since they have lost just once in six games and are unbeaten in four.

The main problem is goals, whilst only Reading have conceded less, only three teams have scored less than them with 13 goals both scored and conceded. Ben Burgess, Stuart Green and John Welsh are their leading scorers in the league with two goals each.

Click HERE to see all Hull’s results this season.

Legend Taylor has claimed that his side are a match for anyone and they should travel to Burnley full of confidence although he highlights Ade Akinbiyi and Gifton Noel-Williams as the two players who could give his side the most trouble.

That Hull side is expected to be the same as the one that beat Derby last week although Nicky Barmby, left out last week, could return to the bench. Full back Andy Dawson, he who benefited from Graham Laws’ dislike of Burnley in 1999, is not expected to have recovered in time having recently been out with a knee injury.

The expected Hull team is: Boaz Myhill, Mark Lynch, Leon Cort, Damien Delaney, Roland Edge, Ryan France, Curtis Woodhouse, John Welsh, Stuart Elliott, Chris Brown, Ben Burgess. Subs from: Matt Duke, Stuart Green, Kevin Ellison, Craig Fagan, Marc Joseph, Nicky Barmby.

Click HERE to see the full Hull squad.

Burnley’s squad is going to be similar to the one that went out of the Carling Cup at Aston Villa on Tuesday. Graham Branch, injured in that challenge, for want of a better word, with Shaun Derry is ruled out but he would have been out suspended in any case, and John McGreal looks certain to be missing again after picking up an injury at Palace last Saturday.

Micah Hyde is back after missing out at Villa with a one match ban, and will almost certainly start whilst young goalkeeper Mark Crossley was sent off for the reserves on Wednesday, ridiculously so, but his suspension doesn’t start until 9th November so would be involved if required.

Then there is Nathan Dyer who might just have joined us on loan from Southampton. Neither club has as yet confirmed or denied it but if he has signed then expect him to be on the bench tonight.

[The signing of Dyer has now been confirmed by Burnley FC]

The big question will be who drops out for Hyde. I suspect it will be Chris McCann but hope not, I feel his performance at Villa was more than enough to keep him in the side ahead of John Spicer. I just think Steve will go with the more experienced Spicer.

Likely team: Brian Jensen, Michael Duff, Keith Lowe, Frank Sinclair, Jon Harley, Wade Elliott, James O’Connor, Micah Hyde, John Spicer, Garreth O’Connor, Ade Akinbiyi. Subs from: Mark Crossley, Duane Courtney, Marc Pugh, Chris McCann, Gifton Noel-Williams, Kyle Lafferty, Marc Pugh plus Nathan Dyer if he has signed for us.

We’ve reported this previously when the Clarets beat Hull 2-1 in front of the Longside for its last ever game with goals from Kurt Nogan and a Neil Allison own goal.

The teams were,

Burnley: Marlon Beresford, Gerry Harrison, Chris Vinnicombe, Peter Swan (David Eyres), Mark Winstanley, Jamie Hoyland (Tony Philliskirk), Ted McMinn, Warren Joyce, Andy Cooke, Kurt Nogan, Paul McDonald.

Hull: Steve Wilson, Neil Allison, Jimmy Graham, Glenn Humphries, Bob Dewhurst, Andy Williams, Richard Peacock (Paul Fewings), Chris Lee (Craig Lawford), Andy Mason, Dean Windass, Neil Mann.