Hull City 3-2 Brentford
- Published
Nigel Adkins replaced Leonid Slutsky as Hull head coach on Thursday
Hull City came from a goal behind to beat Brentford and give new head coach Nigel Adkins a winning start.
Brentford took the lead when Ollie Watkins' low cross was turned into his own net by David Meyler, but Kamil Grosicki's powerful drive made it 1-1.
Seb Larsson found the bottom corner with a 25-yard free-kick to put the Tigers ahead and Jackson Irvine slotted in five minutes later for 3-1.
John Egan pulled one back, but Hull held on for a first win in eight games.
The home side weathered late pressure as the Bees, who had lost just one of their previous 13 league games, pushed for an equaliser, but Allan McGregor denied Watkins in injury time.
Adkins, who was only brought in on an 18-month contract on Thursday, saw his new side produce a potent performance going forward, but also a shaky one at times in defence.
Fraizer Campbell struck the post and tested Dan Bentley, but ultimately it took wonder goals from Grosicki and Larsson to give Hull the lead that proved decisive, despite nine nervous minutes of added time.
Victory moves the Tigers up into 18th place - six points away from the relegation zone - while Brentford are 12th, 10 points adrift of the play-offs.
Hull City head coach Nigel Adkins:
"The players were top drawer. Obviously the results haven't been going as well as we would have liked but the players have done excellent today.
"They showed some great character and team spirit which is what you need first and foremost.
"It was a test of character going 1-0 down after the run of results we've had. The players deserve great credit. It's a great start."
Brentford boss Dean Smith:
"For 49 minutes it wasn't very difficult at all. Until the lad (Grosicki) scores a wonder goal and it became a game-changer.
"We felt this was an opportunity for us to come and get three points, and I felt like it was going to be.
"I was stood on the side quite comfortable for 49, 50 minutes then we pressed the self-destruct button."