ON TARGET: Oli McBurnie celebrates putting the Tigers ahead. Pictures courtesy of Hull City
Hull City 2 - 2 Ipswich Town
Premier League
MKM Stadium
Attendance: 24,459
By Sam Hawcroft, Hull City Correspondent
Hull City’s Halloween fixture was little short of a first-half horror show – but it ended honours even after a second-half thriller at the MKM Stadium.
The Tigers recovered from a flat opening 45 minutes and a goal down to lead Ipswich Town 2-1, only for Julio Enciso to produce a stunning equaliser as the visitors earned a 2-2 draw.
Before kick-off, City’s annual Remembrance commemoration was, as ever, impeccably observed, providing a poignant prelude to an afternoon that took a fair bit to get going but would eventually spring to life.
Ipswich were the brighter side from the outset and offered the first threat after six minutes when Abdoul Ouattara made ground down the flank and whipped in a cross from the byline, although Konstantinos Tzolakis gathered it comfortably.
A few minutes later, Enciso tried his luck from range, but again the City goalkeeper was able to collect without too much difficulty.
Neither side was exactly setting the world alight during the opening quarter of an hour, but on balance it was Ipswich who looked the more purposeful. City’s ventures into the opposition half were relatively few and far between, while the visitors looked more comfortable moving the ball through midfield and finding space around the edges of the Tigers’ defence.
Ipswich won the first corner of the afternoon in the 17th minute and the delivery created a brief scramble in the City area before the danger was eventually cleared.
Five minutes later, however, the visitors had the goal their stronger start had threatened.
Ouattara did well in the middle of the City half, holding off pressure before sliding the ball through to Florentino Luís on the right. He was forced towards a very tight angle but kept his composure and finished superbly beyond Tzolakis to put Ipswich 1-0 ahead.
At that stage City were struggling to offer much in response and badly needed something to lift both themselves and a home crowd that had been given relatively little to get excited about.
Exequiel Palacios went into the book in the 27th minute and City were awarded a free kick from around 35 yards, but Lewie Coyle’s floated delivery was cleared without serious alarm.
There were much louder appeals from the stands moments later when John Egan went down inside the penalty area. The defender certainly felt there had been enough contact, thumping the ground in frustration, but referee Thomas Kirk immediately waved away the protests.
Ipswich continued to look the more dangerous side when the game became stretched. Enciso emerged from a midfield battle with possession and drove towards the City area, only for Tim Iroegbunam to make an excellent intervention just as the visitors threatened to open things up again.
The Tigers then survived an even bigger scare in the 34th minute. Another messy passage of play inside the area ended with Enciso putting the ball into the net, apparently giving Ipswich a two-goal cushion, but VAR intervened and the effort was ruled out for a foul by Abdul Fatawu.
It was a significant let-off for City, who by then could have had few complaints had they found themselves further behind.
There were at least signs of life as the half moved towards its conclusion and, in the 36th minute, City finally won their first corner of the afternoon.
That immediately became a second when the initial delivery was sliced behind by an Ipswich defender, and then a third after goalkeeper Christian Walton failed to claim cleanly and the ball was eventually bundled away.
Nothing tangible came from the spell of pressure, but it was the first time City had managed to pin Ipswich back for any sustained period and it briefly gave the home crowd something to respond to.
Iroegbunam then tried his luck from distance in the 38th minute, although his effort was high and well wide.
City finished the half with a little more purpose than they had shown for much of it, but there was no disguising the fact that Ipswich had been the better side. The visitors had controlled long spells, created the clearer openings and would probably have felt unfortunate to be only one goal ahead at the interval.
Sergej Jakirovic responded decisively at half-time.
Egan was withdrawn and Matt Crooks introduced as City abandoned their back five and switched to a four-man defence, giving them an extra body further up the pitch.
The change did not produce an immediate transformation and the opening stages of the second half remained fairly scrappy, but City gradually began to play with more purpose.
Ipswich still threatened first, Emersonn shooting just wide of the left-hand post in the 55th minute when he perhaps should have tested Tzolakis.
At the other end, the volume inside the MKM began to rise when Coyle’s cross was headed behind and City won a corner. Oli McBurnie met the delivery but, with little time to set himself, could only send a looping header over the bar.
The big striker had found it difficult to impose himself during the first half, but he would soon have a major influence on the game.
In the 58th minute City finally found their equaliser, and it was a goal that underlined the greater aggression and intent they were beginning to show.
McBurnie moved the ball into the path of Iroegbunam on the right and the sluggish Ipswich defence appeared to be waiting for him to look for a pass towards the centre. Instead, he kept going.
Iroegbunam drove into the penalty area and, from the right-hand side, unleashed a superb finish beyond Walton to make it 1-1.
It was the first time all afternoon that City had really seized control of the contest and suddenly the atmosphere inside the stadium changed. The Tigers were playing with greater confidence, pushing further up the pitch and beginning to force Ipswich into the kind of uncomfortable situations they themselves had faced before half-time.
Ten minutes later, the turnaround was complete.
Mohamed Belloumi won a free kick right on the edge of the D and initially shaped as though he might take responsibility himself.
Instead it was McBurnie who stepped forward, almost swaggering towards the ball, before driving a low effort through the Ipswich wall. The diving Walton was most likely unsighted by his defenders as the ball rolled past him into the bottom-right corner.
From a goal down and largely second best at half-time, City were suddenly 2-1 ahead.
The transformation had been considerable, but their advantage lasted only six minutes.
Enciso collected possession in space, moved the ball forward a couple of yards and then produced a moment of outstanding individual quality, unleashing a powerful long-range strike that gave Tzolakis no chance.
From there the game became increasingly open, with both sides showing enough ambition to suggest they still believed all three points were there to be won.
Substitute Brooke Norton-Cuffy almost made an immediate impact in the 78th minute, finding room inside the area and forcing Walton into an excellent save, the Ipswich goalkeeper tipping his effort around the post.
City continued to press when opportunities arose and Belloumi’s strong run won another corner in the 84th minute, but Ipswich remained dangerous themselves and were quick to remind the Tigers that the momentum could still swing either way.
Jack Clarke was brought down and the resulting free kick was floated dangerously into the City area, although it somehow evaded everyone.
Then, in the 88th minute, Semi Ajayi was booked for a foul that handed Ipswich another deep free-kick and again City had to defend carefully as the visitors looked for a late winner.
The closing stages became increasingly end-to-end.
Daizen Maeda headed narrowly wide shortly before four minutes of stoppage time were announced, while Jakirovic made a final attacking change by introducing Joe Gelhardt for Regan Slater.
There was still time for City to threaten again when Issa Diop was booked for a foul and Belloumi delivered the resulting free kick into the area, but Walton read the danger well and came up to claim.
Ipswich then had the final opening of the afternoon, Ouattara shooting wide with around 30 seconds remaining, before the whistle brought an entertaining contest to a close.
Before half-time the Tigers had looked short of ideas and fortunate not to be further behind, but Jakirovic’s decision to change the shape paid off.
Although Enciso’s superb strike denied them victory, there was plenty to admire in the way they responded after such an underwhelming opening half. City have not won since the end of August, granted – but they remain unbeaten at home in this Premier League campaign. Would anyone have predicted that at this stage of the season?