From Millwall’s MDT
Hull City
In 1904, having started out life as Hull Comets, Hull AFC turned professional and assumed the name of the defunct Hull City amateur side that had played in the city. Unlike our friends at Crystal Palace, who also took on a defunct club's name, Hull City do not claim any of the former club's history and state their year of foundation at 1904.
Thanks to their location in a rugby league hotbed, Hull City were quickly offered a place in the Football League in 1905 and made a good start to life on the Second Division. However, despite coming within goal difference of promotion to the top flight in 1910, heartbreakingly losing 3-0 to Oldham Athletic, who took their place instead, it was the second tier that was to become the regular hunting ground for these 'Tigers', as they spent 21 consecutive seasons there, with only the First World War interrupting their run.
This run was broken in 1930, not by promotion, but by relegation to the Third Division (North). Yet this was the season when the side finally put Hull on the map for association football reasons, with a fine run to the FA Cup Semi-Finals including defeats of First Division Manchester City and Newcastle United, before a 2-2 draw and then a narrow 1-0 defeat to eventual winners Arsenal. But unlike Millwall, who were given the nickname 'Lions' by the Victorian press due to their giant killing exploits, Hull City were given their nickname of 'Tigers' long before this cup run, simply based on the amber and black stripes they have worn since their foundation.
On a side note, the man that got Hull City relegated for the first time and led them to the FA Cup Semi-Final, Bill McCracken, was later employed by Millwall and also got us relegated for the first time, despite Millwall being one of the best supported clubs in the country between the wars.
Hull City spent the 1930s bouncing between the Second Division and Third Division (North), but talking of crowds, the post war demonstrated what a big club they could be if given success. In 1949, they averaged 36,760 winning the Third Division (Third), and then over 37,000 the following season finishing 7th in the Second Division. Perhaps many of those fans were happy to just have some normality back, after the city was heavily targeted by the Luftwaffe in the war. But it was still a case of not really getting anywhere on the pitch despite such great backing, and by the time Beatlemania was in full swing, Hull were established as a Third Division side again.
In the 1965-66 season, the big cats of Millwall and Hull City were scrapping it out to get promoted out of the Third Division. Both were clubs that if given some success could attract big crowds, but both were in areas starting to suffer in the post war period of de-industrialisation and decline for the UK. The crowds for both were not quite as big as they had been in the immediate post-war period, but Hull City still attracted over 40,000 for their top of the table clash with the Lions, a 1-0 win for the Tigers, with Millwall getting over 17,000 for the return the following day, a 3-0 win for the Lions. Given the fact that both Arsenal and Chelsea were at home in the First Division that day, it shows what a decent crowd that was still, and likely more given Millwall's tendency to understand declare gate receipts back then. Both sides were promoted, Hull City as champions and Millwall as runners-up, still unbeaten at home over two seasons by then & on their way to 59 home games unbeaten.
However, darker times were around the corner for Hull, both the city and club. The fishing conditions set out at the end of the 'Cod Wars' in the 1970s had a devastating effect on Hull's economy and therefore the ability of fans to attend games, as so many people relied on the fishing industry either directly or indirectly. By the start of the 1980s, Hull City were in Division Four for the first time and getting gates of under 5,000. They did make enough of a recovery to host Millwall's promotion to the top flight in 1988, but most of the late 1990s and early 2000s saw them mired in the bottom division as more a comatosed, rather than sleeping giant.
But things were about to change for this much maligned club with a move to a new stadium in 2002. Instantly, crowds shot up, and by 2008 the Tigers had finally made it to the top flight, with a magical play-off victory over Bristol City. Magical, because it was local lad and Hull City legend, Dean Windass, who got the game's only and therefore winning goal. The team were relegated after two seasons, but it has started a bit of a golden era for the club, as they were back in the PL by 2013 and even enjoyed reaching an FA Cup Final the following year, where they raced into an early 2-0 lead against Arsenal, only to lose 3-2 in extra time.
The team's yo-yoing between the PL and Championship eventually caught up with them, however, and in 2020 they were relegated to League One. Hull bounced straight back and after a couple of seasons readjusting, are now once again prowling around the top six.
