Exclusive: Phil Brown reveals why Hull City are 'disadvantaged' by spygate play-off saga | OneFootball

FLW spoke exclusively to the former play-off final winning boss of the Tigers amid the ongoing debacle

Hull City are gearing up their preparations ahead of the richest game in club football, having sealed their passage into the 2025/26 Championship play-off final with a 2-0 second leg and aggregate success over Millwall.

The Tigers were heavily tipped for relegation by many outside the MKM Stadium following the appointment of Sergej Jakirovic on a two-year contract last June, having been hit with a two-window transfer fee restriction a month later.

However, the Bosnian's newly-assembled squad have batted away all the scepticism and instances of on and off-pitch adversity to reach Wembley Stadium for the first time in 10 years.

Mohamed Belloumi and Joe Gelhardt were the semi-final heroes at The Den through their late strikes in front of the travelling 2,174 City fans, with the rest of Jakirovic's team, as well as the 49-year-old, serenaded long after the full-time whistle blew in SE16.

After a period of rest and recuperation, it was reported that City's first-team squad had reconvened at their Mill House Woods Lane training base in nearby Cottingham to start their preparations, only they have been impacted by the ongoing spygate saga which has carried on after the other semi-finals involving Southampton and Middlesbrough.

Phil Brown's thoughts on how Southampton, Middlesbrough saga impacts Hull City play-off final preparation

The spygate allegations have dominated plenty of discussions in the world of football within the past week, after it was reported that a Southampton intern analyst had photographed and recorded Middlesbrough training sessions at Rockliffe Park leading up to the goalless first leg at the Riverside Stadium.

Saints then emerged victorious from their home leg at St Mary's 2-1, 24 hours after City had seen off the Lions, with Ross Stewart and Shea Charles cancelling out Riley McGree's fifth-minute opener.

However, that only added further fuel to the fire, with Tonda Eckert walking out of a second press conference after facing more questions on the matter, before pictures of the alleged intern emerged.

It has since been confirmed by the EFL that an independent disciplinary commission, which will only involve Southampton, will take place on, or before Tuesday, May 19th, four days before the final takes place, even though both Hull and Saints have opened ticket sales.

Eight days will have elapsed between then and when Hull secured their place in North London, whilst a kick-off time of 4:30PM on 23rd May is still marked with a 'subject to change' condition, relating to the potential outcome of the disciplinary commission.

Amid all the legalities, one man who Jakirovic will hope to emulate by taking City to the top-flight at Wembley is Phil Brown, and he exclusively explained to Football League World why the aforementioned developments may disadvantage his former side.

"I've been talking to other (reporters) about this as if I was doing an interview, and I'm the manager. And that's exactly what Sergej has done," Brown said.

"Apparently he's (Jared Dublin, sporting director), come out and said, 'we need to focus all our attention on playing against Southampton a week on Saturday and make all our preparations until we're told otherwise'. I think that's the only way to approach it as a manager, as a club that's legitimately got there.

"Now, if there's an illegal way of getting there and Southampton do and the game is postponed or cancelled or moved to another date, I think that's totally wrong," the former City boss added.

"That's totally against the whole season and the preparation of Hull City getting to the play-off final. I think it becomes an advantage to whoever (potentially did) the foul play, whoever that club is, if it lies with Southampton, they're going to sneak an advantage.

"The fact that you don't know when you're going to play, you don't know if you're going to play them, you don't know if you're going to play against Middlesbrough. It's just totally wrong that you should never, ever detract from what is probably the biggest game of the season and probably the richest game of anybody's season when you're playing in the final of the Championship play-offs," Brown stated.

"It's just an unusual situation that now needs to be well and truly thought out and cleaned up immediately. It sets a precedent. Everybody's got an opinion about it and this, that and the other. And it will have repercussions, no doubt about it."

Phil Brown's thoughts on what action could be taken ahead of Hull City v Southampton play-off final

Unsurprisingly, a whole array of potential sanctions have been debated amongst supporters, with Middlesbrough pushing for a sporting sanction to hit Tonda Eckert's side, amid claims that the German, or Saints technical director, could be banned until 2027 or a potential expulsion from the play-offs comes the way of the South Coast club.

Given the short timeframe between now and the showpiece event, any final decision is unlikely to please those who are impacted as club staff or supporters. But, Brown gave his thoughts on what the final outcome should be if the original date and kick-off time remained jeopardised.

"At the same time, the brilliance of Hull City over 2 legs (v Millwall, was great)," he continued.

"In the first game, they were well and truly second-class citizens. In the second game, it was a plan that came together that just told me and told the rest of the footballing world that this guy (Jakirovic) knows what he's doing.

"He can plan, he can prepare, he can change, he can morph into a different shape, he can morph into a different type of style of football. He's got players that are committed to the cause and they did the job. You know, they've done the job on Monday. Why do you have to hinder them now? You don't have to hinder them," the 66-year-old claimed.

"If there's some foul play going on and Southampton have, without a shadow of a doubt, got to the play-off final because the results tell you that. Then they have to make a decision quickly. If they're going to change their minds and say it's Middlesbrough, at least it gives Hull City a week to 10 days' preparation, which is fair.

"But if they don't, and they hang on and say, 'we're going to change the venue, and we're going to change the time', that just goes ‘advantage Southampton’. They've already got the advantage, if truth be known, whether they've done it illegally or legally. They've already got the advantage because everyone's talking about it," said Brown.

"It's just wrong. It's wrong. You're taking away from the competition as far as I'm concerned. If there's something to be done, it needs to be done now and quickly. If not, give Hull City the spoils and let them go to the Premier League."