Brown keeps relaxed Hull homing in on victory
Hull's manager, Phil Brown, insists there is a deep-rooted determination in his players to guide the club to a first Wembley appearance today by completing an aggregate win over Watford in the Championship play-off semi-finals.
Goals from Nicky Barmby and Dean Windass gave the Tigers a 2-0 victory in the first leg on Sunday and ensured Brown's team are resounding favourites to reach the final on May 24.
A crowd in excess of 20,000 is expected at the KC Stadium and Brown has set his stall out to win the second leg rather than allow his side to rest on their laurels and let the Hornets find a way back.
"We get to this situation and we've got to deal with a 2-0 half-time score where the opposition have had two and a half days to prepare for coming out of that changing room again and throwing everything at you, which I fully expect," said Brown, who is aiming to guide Hull into the top flight for the first time in the club's 104-year history.
"You've got be mentally prepared to stand up to that, and if you're not you might as well not be here. I want players that are mentally prepared and from what I've seen on the training ground over the last couple of days I think I've got that.
"The players are very relaxed, very focused, very competitive and very up for it. All the players seem to be focused on the job in hand and they are just hoping they get the nod and start. If not, they'll be on the bench. If not, they'll be in the stands and they'll be supportive of their team-mates, which for me has been the recipe for success this season."
"We are going to focus on 90 minutes of football where we are fully intending on winning the game tomorrow night. It's not going to be a case of trying to draw. We've got to try and win the game, end of story."
Brown is also adamant the pressure generated by the potential of a trip to Wembley and the prospect of securing promotion to the Premier League is not hampering his preparations or affecting his players ahead of the second leg.
"It doesn't play on my mind, I've been to Wembley a few times and that's not being blase because we have been talking about it," added Brown. "We've all got experiences and they are all coming together at the right time.
"I think of the milestones we've passed this season, and there are still a couple to go. We've never been to Wembley before and we've never been in the top flight.
"So there's a couple of big challenges there. They might hang heavy on one or two individuals' shoulders, but as a collective I'd say they've really enjoyed training today and they really enjoyed Sunday.
"It is all about the mentality of the players now and I said that on Sunday. I thought the mentality when they crossed the white line was bang on. Now we need another one tomorrow night."
Dean Marney, the midfielder who missed the first leg due to a knee injury, faces a late fitness test but is expected to return against the Hornets. The experienced former Bolton duo of Jay-Jay Okocha and Henrik Pedersen are also pushing to be involved, leaving Brown to ponder whether to chop and change a winning side.
"I haven't named the team yet," said Brown. "The players are very relaxed. They've had an 11 v 11 today and we had a four-man overspill because there are 26 players fit and raring to go. It's a lovely headache I've got."