Connolly brace as Hull battle back to beat Blackburn

Substitute Aaron Connolly scored a late brace as Hull came from behind to beat 10-man Blackburn 2-1 in a breathless encounter.

Rovers were up against it from the 17th minute when Harry Pickering was given his marching orders for upending Liam Delap when clean through but displayed great resilience and managed to take a 74th-minute lead through Sam Gallagher.

However, Hull recovered superbly and Connolly volleyed home an 81st-minute equaliser before handing the Tigers their first away league win since January with a composed finish seven minutes later.

Hull deserved their second straight victory on the balance of play but Rovers perhaps should have come out of the game with something and will rue missed chances for Gallagher and Niall Ennis a minute before Connolly’s decisive strike.

Hull went close twice early on, but Aynsley Pears produced a fine low save to repel Ozan Tufan’s eighth-minute shot before denying on-loan Scott Twine from a narrow angle.

The hosts’ afternoon was made considerably harder when Pickering saw red after misjudging a long ball and bringing down Delap 20 yards out with only the keeper to beat.

Rovers regrouped but Hull maintained the pressure and Callum Brittain made a vital block to thwart Tufan.

Twine struck the side-netting just after the restart but the Tigers should have been ahead in the 58th minute when Lewis Travis lost possession and Jean Michael Seri cut the ball back for Delap but Pears was alert and rushed out to make a brilliant stop with his outstretched leg.

Blackburn’s disciplined defending and counter-attacking approach looked to have paid off with 16 minutes left when Ennis drove forward and, though his shot was blocked, the ball fell to the feet of fellow substitute Gallagher who took a touch before emphatically slamming home from 12 yards.

However, Liam Rosenior’s men hit back in style seven minutes later when Seri’s pinpoint pass over the defence found the run of Connolly who crashed a superb volley into the roof of the net.

Back came Rovers in a pulsating finale when Adam Wharton set up Ennis who slammed his shot onto the right post before Hull cleared.

The game swung decisively within a minute as Blackburn went agonisingly close twice in the 87th minute when Gallagher raced clear only to see Matt Ingram block his shot and Ennis’ rebound header cleared off the line.

That reprieve left Hull free to deliver the knockout blow a minute later when Alfie Jones picked out another intelligent Connolly run and with just Pears to beat, he showed remarkable composure to roll the ball into the bottom left corner.