Cotterill's Craft Earns Blades Another Stab at Hull

Like so many FA Cup games these days, there was every prospect of the shadow of the Premier League looming large at Bramall Lane. Would Hull City treat it as an intrusion into the serious business of staying in the top flight? Would Sheffield United be distracted by the demands of retaining a top six spot in the ­Championship?

We needn't have worried. This was a good old-fashioned tie, full of commitment and incident, played in a good atmosphere with a big following from Humberside, and with some unlikely twists and turns. The stand-in striker Greg Halford gave United an early boost, canceled out by the makeshift midfielder Kamil Zayatte.

From then it was anyone's guess who would prevail. Hull, with Zayatte continuing to do an effective job, had the better efforts on goal. But Kevin Blackwell's side, who conceded the club's first league double to Sheffield Wednesday for 95 years last week, could never be discounted. David Cotterill played excellently up and down their right flank and, overall, who could argue that they merited a second chance?

Blackwell, who admitted he had to pick himself off the deck, as well as his players, after the defeat against Wednesday, said: "They showed some real courage at times and gave me everything against a side who powered their way into the Premier League and powered their way through it in the early part of the season. Look at the results they got at Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea. They have not had so many lately, but are still in a terrific position.

"If we could have got through to half-time 1-0 up it could have been interesting. They would have had to really force the game from there. It would have been interesting.

The Hull manager Phil Brown, who moved Zayatte forward to replace the injured Ian Ashbee and gave Anthony Gardner a comeback after five months on the sidelines, said: "It was a great cup tie — a feisty affair with both sides taking a lot of credit. We came out of the traps slowly and I take responsibility for that because of the changes I made. But when Zayatte began to find his feet, we came back into it with a well-drilled free-kick and could have gone on to win it. The massive plus for us was Gardner getting a full 90 minutes under his belt.

"Cotterill had a great game. Andy Dawson has had some top internationals in his pocket this season, but Cotterill was the outstanding talent on the field.

"It's disappointing to have to fit in another game. The next week or so for us is going to be interesting. But you become a victim of your own success to a certain extent - and we're in the hat for the quarter-finals."

With four players ineligible or suspended, United had Halford, normally a defender, playing alongside Billy Sharp in the hope he would use his height and strength to unsettling effect. "We needed a presence there and he is very athletic," said Blackwell. "He's not bad in goal either. He could be a big player for us between now and the end of the season."

With seven minutes gone, Halford made his mark. Cotterill was given space to measure his cross when Dawson slipped and did so perfectly for Halford to meet it at the far post with a header across Boaz Myhill and in at the far upright.

Halford put a half-chance straight at the goalkeeper before he was switched to the centre of defence after Chris Morgan went down with a knee injury. As Morgan was being wheeled off to the dressing room, Dawson played in a free-kick that Zayatte glanced wide of Paddy Kenny.

In first-half stoppage time Sharp, now partnered by the substitute Danny Webber, had a chance to restore his team's lead, but was too high with a header from Cotterill's near post center.

Kenny twice kept United in touch after the break, blocking Richard Garcia's header and keeping out Bernard Mendy's cross shot with his knees. From a Mendy center, Dean Marney was primed for a strike on goal until substitute Manucho got in the way. Then, from another pin-point Cotterill cross, Stephen Quinn drove wide with a chance to win it for United.