Ten years ago, Hull City were preparing for their upcoming Coca-Cola League One campaign, after achieving their first promotion in 19 years - finishing second in the old Third Division. A decade later, they are looking forward to a second successive season in the Premier League, as well as their first ever foray into European football. What a decade for a club who were on the brink of dropping into the Conference only 16 years ago.

When most football fans think of ‘fairy tale’ stories in football, they immediately think of Wimbledon's 'crazy gang' winning the FA Cup in 1988, and in more recent times, Swansea’s rise from the bottom of League Two to the Premier League and League Cup success. Hull City’s rise from the bottom is very rarely mentioned, despite some incredible achievements.

Under the management of first Peter Taylor, and later Phil Brown, Hull took only five years to climb from the bottom of the old Division Three to the Premier League, the third fastest climb in English Football League history, and despite 3 seasons back in the Championship after the club hit financial trouble in 2010, the club have gone from strength to strength, achieving their highest ever League finish last season, on top of reaching a first ever FA Cup Final.

In this golden decade Hull City has been a unique club. Four first team players - Boaz Myhill, Andy Dawson, Ryan France and Ian Ashbee, played for the club consistently in every single league, with Tiger's legend Ian Ashbee becoming the first player in history to captain his team in all four professional divisions, from bottom to top. However, I think it is fair to say that outside of the City of Hull, many of these unique achievements, along with the club's rise to the top, have been scarcely recognised.

However, with the City having been awarded ‘UK City of Culture 2017’, and an internationally funded wind farm creating thousands of jobs in the area, Steve Bruce’s fantastic achievements are adding to the feel-good factor in and around what was once described as ‘Britain’s Crappest Town’. The future is certainly looking bright for the club. Ten years ago Hull City had just completed the signings of Delroy Facey and Roland Edge. Quite a contrast to the likes of Internationals Tom Ince and Robert Snodgrass, both of which have become Hull City players this summer!

With the Tigers nearly causing a huge upset in last season's FA Cup Final and with a first ever European campaign starting later this week, has Steve Bruce finally been able to put Hull on the footballing map? I would like to think so, and with a bit of luck this season, both the Club and the City may receive the national recognition they deserve.