Sheffield Wednesday: Relieved Bruce primed for Owls showdown

Hull City boss Steve Bruce is relishing the prospect of taking on Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship Play-Off Final next week.
Hull City boss Steve BruceHull City boss Steve Bruce
Hull City boss Steve Bruce

Bruce, chasing a fourth promotion, saw his Tigers side book their third trip the national stadium in two years last night.

Hull, who finished fourth in the regular season, were pushed all the way in an aggregate 3-2 victory over Derby in the Sky Bet Championship semi-final.

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Johnny Russell and an Andy Robertson own goal earned Derby a 2-0 win in the second leg.

But the damage was done at the iPro Stadium and the Tigers will now lock horns with the Owls on Saturday, May 28.

Speaking after his 200th match in charge, a relieved Bruce said: “We are through and we will start preparing for a big day out at Wembley.”

Reaching the final was the minimum requirement for Bruce after his side faded from one-time leaders to miss out on automatic promotion and an immediate return to the Barclays Premier League.

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“For a club like ours it’s a magnificent achievement (to get back to Wembley). In that respect we’re really pleased,” added the Hull manager.

Bruce knew that his side nearly threw their advantage away and revealed he had tried to calm their nerves at half-time in the second leg.

He said: “We had to erase everything and do the basics.

“Go back to basics was the call and we knew we still had the goal to hang on to. In the second half our defensive side kicked in.”