Hull City vs Derby County. Sky Bet Championship.
MKM StadiumAttendance24,451.
Hull City 0-1 Derby County: Nat Phillips nets late winner in relegation six-pointer
Report and free match highlights from the Sky Bet Championship match between Hull City and Derby County at the MKM Stadium on Saturday; Nat Phillips nets late winner for Rams in relegation six-pointer.
Saturday 26 April 2025 18:56, UK
Nat Phillips struck six minutes from time as Derby took a massive step towards Sky Bet Championship survival but Hull's hopes of similarly avoiding the drop suffered a major blow.
In a low-quality contest that was dubbed a relegation six-pointer between two sides immediately above the bottom three at the start of the day, Phillips' late header gave the Rams a priceless 1-0 win.
Derby had dropped to 22nd place after Luton's late win over Coventry in the lunchtime kick-off but the Rams made it back-to-back away victories - having beaten West Brom on Monday - to move up to 19th.
- Championship highlights | Table | Fixtures
- All you need to know - Streaming Sky Sports with NOW | Get Sky Sports
- Download the Sky Sports App to watch every Sky Sports+ game
- Live EFL on Sky Sports+ & how to watch | Get more EFL to your phone with WhatsApp
John Eustace's side still need to beat Stoke on the last day of the season next weekend to guarantee their second-tier status, which could have a significant say on whether Hull also stay up.
If the Tigers, now 22nd, win at Portsmouth in their final game, that will be enough to finish ahead of the loser of Derby-Stoke, who are one and two points clear respectively of Hull.
Ruben Selles' side will need an improved showing against Pompey as, while they were on top for much of this clash, they lacked a cutting edge and were unable to test Derby goalkeeper Josh Vickers.
Hull got on the front foot and dominated possession early on but Regan Slater's scuffed shot was their best chance, while he limped off inside the opening quarter of an hour to be replaced by Steven Alzate.
Derby gradually got a foothold into the game but failed to test Ivor Pandur in the first half, with Kane Wilson's marauding run cut out by Sean McLoughlin and Harrison Armstrong's shot deflected wide.
The hosts also desperately lacked inspiration in the final third, underlined by John Egan, who last scored professionally in January 2023 for Sheffield United, curling over from the edge of the area.
Gustavo Puerta and Nordin Amrabat were off-target from distance as Hull showed more urgency after the interval, while Joe Gelhardt's effort deflected wide with Vickers scrambling to cover.
Gelhardt, whose two second-half penalties secured a 2-1 win over Preston on Monday, then cut onto his left foot following a ball over the top but he miscued wide after firing towards the near post.
Wilson ran at goal and fired an effort over from the edge of the box, while Eustace introduced Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Kayden Jackson to give them some extra impetus as the match neared its closing stages.
But it was centre-half Phillips who scored a scarcely-deserved opener for Derby as he rose highest to head beyond a diving Pandur from Craig Forsyth's inch-perfect free-kick.
Joao Pedro, Mason Burstow and Matt Crooks were all brought on for Hull but Derby held on, with Alfie Jones' long-range effort sailing over, the closest the home side came to an equaliser.
The managers
Hull's Ruben Selles:
"I'm very disappointed with this result, it's difficult to take but we have to accept it and know that if we win the last game of the season, we will be where we want to be.
"It's now or never if we want to stay up - and we want to do it. Let's prepare in the week, go for it with everything we have and I will demand everything from us."
Derby's John Eustace:
"We just prepared properly. The lads were focused on this game, that's all we care about. It's very important that we don't get carried away with the highs and lows.
"You don't look at the other clubs and what they're doing, we concentrate on Derby County and we can control that. If we start worrying about other things, there will be problems.
"I was unaware that Luton had won, I'm sure the majority of the group were as well and we went about our business in the right way and got the right result."
A momentous final day of the season awaits next weekend as Derby still need to beat Stoke at Pride Park to guarantee their second-tier status, with the Potters also not certain of survival.
"I'm really pleased with the three points, Eustace added. "Full credit to the players, they have handled the big occasion very well and now they've got to go and do it next week."
