With the upcoming visit of Hull City to Vicarage Road in the Sky Bet Championship this Saturday (April 20, 3pm KO), we look back at five memorable Hornets victories over the Tigers.
Watford 4-0 Hull City - May 14, 1979
Graham Taylor’s Golden Boys headed into the final fixture of the 1978/79 Division Three campaign knowing they had to win to clinch promotion in an engrossing five-way battle for the top three spots.
Taylor’s men delivered with a thumping 4-0 win as goals from league top scorer Ross Jenkins, Luther Blissett, Ian Bolton and Roger Joslyn secured second place and the promotion party could begin for the second consecutive year.
Watford 1-0 Hull City - January 18, 1988
The Hornets faced the Tigers for the third time in 10 days as the teams met for a second FA Cup third-round replay after two previous draws.
Manager Steven Harrison, however, had his first sight of Hull City having only been appointed after the most recent replay and was in charge for just his second Watford game.
The winning goal came from Malcolm Allen and the Golden Boys marched on, reaching the quarter-finals of the competition before being knocked out by eventual winners Wimbledon.
Hull City 1-2 Watford - November 5, 2005
Aidy Boothroyd’s Watford side headed to Hull early in the 2005/06 season after an 18th placed finish in the Championship the previous year.
A squad notably consisting of names such as Ben Foster, Lloyd Doyley, Jay DeMerit and Ashley Young claimed a 2-1 victory at the KC Stadium, with goals from Gavin Mahon and Matthew Spring.
It kick-started a thrilling campaign which culminated with victory over Leeds in the play-off final to send the Hornets back to the top-flight.
Hull City 0-1 Watford - April 2, 2013
In the 2012/13 season, Gianfranco Zola’s side were on a late promotion push. A Tuesday night trip to fellow hopefuls Hull City was crucial in the battle for the Premier League.
A superb Troy Deeney curling effort from just outside the box gave keeper David Stockdale little chance, and the Hornets emerged with a vital 1-0 win that led them to a third-placed finish and a play-off campaign.
Despite a memorable semi-final victory over Leicester, it wasn’t to be for Zola and his team as they suffered Wembley heartache at the hands of Crystal Palace.
Watford 1-0 Hull City - October 29, 2016
Watford were in the midst of their best start to a Premier League season under Walter Mazzarri and their fine run continued with a 1-0 win over Hull to take them into seventh place.
A Tigers side full of talent contained names such as Jake Livermore, Harry Maguire and a young Jarrod Bowen, but it was Michael Dawson’s 82nd minute own goal that sealed the deal in a scrappy affair at The Vic.
