Middlesbrough fans allegedly involved in controversial incident before Hull City play-off final | OneFootball

A window on Hull City's team bus was smashed ahead of their play-off final win over Middlesbrough at Wembley.

Hull City won promotion to the Premier League thanks to a dramatic late goal by Oli McBurnie at Wembley to see off Middlesbrough.

In what was an even game, there were very few opportunities for either side as they both looked limited going forward.

However, after some good work down the left flank by Yu Hirakawa, Boro keeper Sol Brynn failed to keep hold of the ball, with McBurnie stabbing home from close range to send the Tigers to the Premier League.

Hull City’s team bus had a window smashed ahead of Wembley clash

The build-up to this fixture was dominated by off-field events, with Southampton expelled from the play-offs for spying on Boro ahead of the first leg.

That decision was only announced on Tuesday, with Saints then appealing the decision, so it wasn’t until Wednesday night that this fixture was officially confirmed.

Naturally, that was a massive relief for all connected to Boro, but it appears some fans took it too far ahead of kick-off.

That’s after Sky Sports reported that a window on the Hull team bus had been smashed at the team hotel in the capital before they were scheduled to take the players to Wembley. It should be noted that this didn’t disrupt Hull’s preparations before the game or delay the kick-off.

Hull City will feel justice is done after play-off success

Obviously, this was a minor incident in the bigger picture, and it’s important to stress that it will have been a few individuals, and it’s not fair to criticise Boro as a club for this.

But, it will have no doubt fired Hull up going into the game, although it’s not like they needed more motivation given what was on the line.

The result also ends any further fallout, as Hull owner Acun Ilicali had said that the club had been advised to seek legal advice if they had lost the game, due to the situation involving Southampton’s expulsion.

For some, the Tigers had a strong argument to claim they deserved to be promoted, as Southampton had been expelled after beating Boro over two legs, and Hull had knocked out Millwall, so they were the last one standing.

Clearly, that is not an avenue they will go down now, so this does mean there will be no more legal issues.

In that sense, Hull will feel that justice has been done, as there can be no question marks over the manner of their victories.

They secured their play-off place on the final day, and they took that momentum into the games, with Sergej Jakirovic’s excellent tactical plan ensuring they overcame Millwall over two legs, which included a great display at The Den.

Once again, their approach was defensive in the final, but these games are all about winning, and Hull restricted Boro to no real clear chances, with Kim Hellberg’s side failing to register a shot on target throughout the game.

So, Jakirovic and the players deserve huge credit for the work they have done all season, but especially in these high-pressure play-off games.