PREVIEW: Hull v Leeds

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KO - 12:00 UK - Kingston Communications Stadium


Hull boss Peter Taylor is boosted by the return to fitness of Alan Rogers and Stuart Elliott for the visit of Yorkshire rivals Leeds.

The pair missed last weekend's 1-1 draw with Ipswich through illness but came through a reserve game on Monday without any problems.

Taylor has a major headache in the left-back slot with Rogers being replaced at Ipswich by Andy Dawson, who performed admirably, forcing the Hull boss into a decison.

Aside from long-term absentees Nick Barmby, Steve McPhee, Ben Burgess, Ian Ashbee and Danny Coles, Taylor has a fully-fit squad to choose from.

Leeds manager Kevin Blackwell has a near full-strength squad to choose from.

With the exception of Gylfi Einarsson, who has been struggling with a virus, Blackwell has no new injury or suspension problems.

Defender Sean Gregan missed training earlier in the week with the same illness, but is expected to be fit.

Blackwell could name an unchanged side from the one held by Stoke at Elland Road last week, when Joel Griffiths stepped off the bench to make his debut and Jermaine Beckford made his second substitutes' appearance.

Richard Cresswell, out for the rest of the campaign with knee ligament damage, and Steve Stone, yet to feature this season after rupturing his Achilles in a pre-season friendly, remain Blackwell's only long-term absentees.

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United boss Kevin Blackwell says Leeds will know exactly what to expect at the KC Stadium this weekend - and it won't be a friendly welcome.

Blackwell is expecting some hostility towards his team, firstly because it's a derby game and is sold out to both sets of supporters, and secondly because of the hiding the Whites gave Hull earlier in the season at Elland Road when they ran out comfortable 2-0 winners.

Leeds could have scored twice as many on that day and Blackwell believes the Tigers will be smarting for revenge.

"It's a Yorkshire derby and I know Hull are treating this as their biggest game of the season," he said.

"It's the one when the fixtures came out in the summer that they were all looking for. I think they could have sold this one out last June because they knew everyone would want to come and see it and sure enough they have sold out.

"That means motivation wise they will have to do very little and they will want to gain revenge for their defeat at Elland Road because we did annihilate them in some style. It was one way traffic apart from a five minute spell and I know that put a few noses out of joint over there and hurt a lot of Hull people."

Even Leeds supporters based in Hull have been in touch with Blackwell to make sure he tells that players just what kind of a crowd they are facing on Saturday, but Blackwell is confident they will take it all in their stride.

"We have gone to places where it has been totally hostile and it's not affected the players one bit. We are used to playing in big stadiums with big crowds.

"Every game Leeds plays is a cup final, we look at Crystal Palace last week having come back from a game against Leeds and lost their next game, Coventry did the same against Crewe. It shows you how much it takes out of teams.

"I spoke to Adie Boothroyd after Watford played here and he said he just couldn't get the players up for the next game, they were shattered and Johan Boskamp after Stoke said it was the hardest he has ever seen his team work.

"It always happens to Leeds because Leeds is the team they all want to come and play for and maybe they're trying to show me they're good enough to come here, I don't know. When you come up against a big club you do put more work in and it can have a good effect or it can have a bad effect in terms of anxiety but so far this season we've knocked over most teams we've come up against.

"It's going to be a cracking atmosphere there no matter what time of day we kick-off because it's a sell out and they've been waiting for this one.

"I hope we play better than we did on our first visit there in 2003 (pre-season friendly). We were embarrassing. It was our third pre-season game and that was the moment I realised we were in deep trouble."