Crystal Palace 0-2 Hull City: N'Doye brace gives Tigers hope

Dame N’Doye’s first goals in five games gave Hull a much needed win over Crystal Palace, who fell to a second consecutive defeat.

After a goalless first half, N’Doye opened the scoring by bundling in a rebound after Robbie Brady’s initial shot was saved by Palace ‘keeper Julian Speroni. Palace then had a goal disallowed in the last ten minutes as Yaya Sanogo’s header was ruled out after he fouled Paul McShane. N’Doye made sure of the points in second half injury time as he drilled home a shot after being teed up by Gaston Ramirez.

There was one change for Hull with Robbie Brady coming in for Alex Bruce, while Joel Ward and Joe Ledley made way for Pape Souare and Martin Kelly. Hull midfielder Mohamed Diame failed a late fitness test and missed out on the game.

It was Hull who dominated the early proceedings. The visitors had more intention going forward but it was the hosts who had the first real chance of the afternoon. Jason Puncheon’s free kick not cleared by the Hull defence and Glenn Murray followed it up with a shot, but the ball was saved by Hull ‘keeper Steve Harper’s legs.

N’Doye may have opened the scoring even earlier had he managed to get the ball on target from six yards out. On the 15 minute mark the Senegalese striker connected with Brady’s pinpoint cross but put the shot wide from inside the six yard area. This miss was followed up by a penalty appeal as the ball supposedly struck Murray’s hand in the area but referee Mark Clattenburg gave nothing.

The first half was full of end to end stuff, helped in part due to the battle on the wing between Brady and Wilfried Zaha. The two energetic wingers were the constant sources of support for their respective teams. The first period ended goalless but there were chances throughout, with Hull looking the side with more intent.

It didn’t take the Tigers long to find the opener, as five seconds into the second half N’Doye gave the Tigers a huge goal. Aluko fed Brady the ball in the six yard box but due to the tight angle Julian Speroni saved his shot, only for the ball to move across goal into N’Doye’s path, he duly obliged and slotted home for his first goal in five games.

Hull were good value for their lead and arguably deserved the opener after being so dominant in some spells. N’Doye almost doubled his and Hull’s goal tally moments later as Tom Huddlestone took three Palace defenders out the game before slotting it to N’Doye in space, however his shot went wide of Speroni’s post.

Palace were incredibly quiet in the second half despite their recent good form. However Yannick Bolasie, the man who Alan Pardew has claimed is worth £40m, made a great play to feed substitute Yaya Sanogo, but James Chester cleared the ball in a last-ditch attempt. A slightly controversial moment came ten minutes from the end.

Sanogo managed to get a head to Souare’s cross and it beat Harper to give a Palace equaliser, or so we thought. Sanogo was holding on to Paul McShane as he headed the ball and Clattenburg disallowed the goal, with it being argued that the goal should have stood. Provoking angry scenes from Palace’s technical area as Pardew was less than impressed.

This moment became all the more significant as N’Doye doubled Hull’s lead In stoppage time. Chung-yong Lee, making his long awaited Palace debut, gave away the ball to Gaston Ramirez as he ran towards the area before feeding N’Doye on the right, who drilled the ball into the bottom corner to seal the points for the Tigers.

Hull took the points by the same scoreline as the corresponding fixture in October, as the win could be hugely significant come the end of the season. The Tigers have more breathing space at the bottom, but Steve Bruce’s men can celebrate a first win since February, and a first away win since the Boxing day win at fellow strugglers Sunderland.

Palace will see this as points dropped but with neither relegation nor Europe beckoning them, only wounded pride will be the issue for Pardew’s Eagles.