Derby County beat Hull City 2-0 at the KC Stadium to overtake their opponents at the top of the Championship table.
Both goals came in the first half via Jacob Butterfield, who struck two fine strikes beyond the reach of Alan McGregor to secure the win.
Hull enjoyed the majority of possession in the second half, without truly troubling opposition keeper Scott Carson on a consistent enough basis.
Relive Sports Mole's live text coverage of events on Humberside below, as the Tigers slipped to their first home defeat of the season.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Championship meeting between Hull City and Derby County at the KC Stadium. The second-tier's two in-form sides face off on Humberside, with just two points separating current leaders Derby and their opponents.
A win will lift the visitors to the summit, while the Tigers can put some distance between themselves and the chasing pack should they come out on top against their promotion rivals. It is a real blockbuster fixture to kick off this Football League weekend, so let's get straight to it and check out some team news.
TEAM NEWS!
HULL CITY XI: McGregor; Odubajo, Davies, Maloney, Maguire; Elmohamady, Livermore, Huddlestone, Clucas; Diame, Hernandez
DERBY COUNTY XI: Carson; Christie, Keogh, Shackell, Warnock; Hendrick, Butterfield, Ince, Thorne; Weimann, Martin
Three changes for the home side, then, all of which have been enforced on City boss Steve Bruce. Two of the regular back four drop out, including influential skipper Michael Dawson who will miss the next month of action through injury. Curtis Davies slots back into the heart of defence alongside Harry Maguire in Dawson's absence.
Ahmed Elmohamady is played at right-back, which could leave Hull open to counter-attacking moves down that wing, while Moses Odubajo is switched to the opposite flank - a position he has played in more than a few times before. Certainly not ideal for Bruce in such a huge game, but this is still a very strong looking starting lineup.
Paul Clement has made just the one change to his side, meanwhile, having also been forced into changing things around from last weekend. Suspended midfielder Bradley Johnson will be a big miss tonight, with his place in the starting lineup being taken by Jeff Hendrick rather than Craig Bryson.
BENCH WATCH!
HULL CITY SUBS: Jakupovic, Bruce, Taylor, Snodgrass, Hayden, Akpom, Aluko
DERBY COUNTY SUBS: Grant, Bryson, Bent, Russell, Baird, Pearce, Shotton
The standout name on the home bench is that of Robert Snodgrass, who takes up his place in the matchday squad following a 15-month absence. The Scotland international has featured just a few times for the Tigers since joining from Norwich City in the summer of 2014, but he could be used at some stage tonight.
Craig Bryson may have been overlooked in midfield following the loss of Johnson, yet there is a good chance he will play a part at some stage tonight in this key fixture. The attacking threat of Darren Bent will also be utilised no doubt, with Andreas Weimann and Chris Martin preferred up top for the visitors this evening.
Abel Hernandez returns for Hull City this evening after being left out last weekend, providing a huge boost for the Tigers in an attacking sense.
Hull head into this weekend's hectic Championship schedule sitting at the summit, but a closer look at the table underlines just how tight it is at the top right now. They know that, worst case scenario, they may be sitting as low as fifth should things go badly - badly! - wrong for them over the next couple of days.
Steve Bruce will not be thinking of the worst case scenario, though, and you can hardly blame him when taking into account his side's form. Seven wins from their last 11, a run that includes no defeats, has helped to Tigers usurp unbeaten Brighton & Hove Albion at the top. That, in large, is down to an impressive defensive resilience that has seen a league-low nine goals shipped so far.
City did miss out on the chance to make it six wins on the bounce against Bristol City, however, in what was ultimately their first disappointing defeat in a good couple of months. The 1-1 draw at Ashton Gate also denied them the chance to record a club-record sixth clean sheet on the bounce, but stretching their unbeaten run to 11 games has not done their promotion prospects a great deal of harm.
DID YOU KNOW? Hull City have not lost a single game on home soil yet this season, something which Steve Bruce was keen to talk up heading into this match. The Tigers have won six and drawn two of their eight games thus far, leaving them behind only Middlesbrough in terms of points won (having played one game fewer).
While the Tigers have looked good on home soil, the Rams have also looked strong away. They have suffered just the one setback on their travels so far this term, although that did come in their last outing at rivals Nottingham Forest prior to the international break. That 1-0 reverse is their only defeat in 12, in fact, going a long way to showing just why they are now back in contention at the top end.
Only Hull have claimed more points than Derby over the last couple of months, so this really should be a tight and cagey affair. That slow start to the campaign for County under the watch of inexperienced manager Paul Clement seems like a long time ago now, with the Rams nicely primed for a top-two finish come the business end of the season.
The two sets of players are now out on the field, with a 'light show' - what's the current obsession with them?! - welcoming the players out at the KC Stadium. Let's get this action-packed weekend underway!
KICKOFF! The visitors, sporting their sky blue and white away kit this evening, get things underway. Hull have won five of the last six meetings between these two sides, while the Rams have kept one clean sheet in their last 23 encounters with tonight's opponents.
Diame finds some space in a narrow position and is allowed to get a shot away. The effort deflected behind for a corner, which lands nicely in the path for Huddlestone to blast well into the top tier.
A little mix-up at the back between Warnock and Carson almost ends in disaster, but the experienced keeper's deflected clearance ended over the bar. A shaky start for the Rams, but they have kept three clean sheets in their last four so expect that to change soon.
Just the one shot so far in these early stages, coming via the right boot of Huddlestone. Derby just starting to settle into their passing groove a little more over the past couple of minutes.
CHANCE! Almost an incredible goal from Christie, who was simply allowed to drift inside from his starting position on the right and find himself through one-on-one. The ball looked to be a little under the full-back's feet when in on goal, though, and his effort was superbly blocked by the covering Maguire.
SAVE! Superb stop from McGregor to deny the Rams a breakthrough goal. Thorne tried his luck from range, with his shot taking a big deflection on its way through, but the Scotsman got a big hand to the ball down to his right to keep the scoreline level.
From the resulting corner, Martin's header is well handled by McGregor once more. No denying who the busier goalkeeper is at this moment in time!
Hernandez tries his luck at a goal of the season contender, twisting his body 16 yards from goal with an attempt that ended high in the stands. Clucas was better positioned there, but you can hardly blame the eight-goal striker for taking it on.
Far more evenly matched over the past couple of minutes following that brief period of Derby dominance, with Hull now just about edging things. You just know this one is going to go right down to the wire, so that first goal is likely to prove key.
GOAL! HULL CITY 0-1 DERBY COUNTY (JACOB BUTTERFIELD)
This is a quite superb goal from the visitors, who have taken their opponents apart to open the scoring on Humberside. Clucas initially gave the ball away in midfield, which allowed Derby to put a few sweeping passes together as they closed in on the Hull goal. The move looked to have denied down inside the area, but a loose ball fell nicely to Butterfield and he coolly fired home left-footed for his second County goal.
So Derby are now at the top of the table - just deserts for their impressive start at the KC Stadium. A decent enough response from the hosts, although they must test Carson a little more if they are to level things up.
Very good pressing from Derby in the middle of the park to disrupt the home side's play. The Rams now forming a real compact shape at the back, setting themselves up to hit Hull on the counter.
Worth pointing out that pre-match stat regarding Derby's clean sheet record in this fixture. It has been 23 games since they last kept a shutout against the Tigers - a 1-0 win here in January 2012. Plenty of football still to be played, as City continue to dominate the possession.
Elmohamady's cross from the right goes right through the box. Diame picks up the pieces and helps work the ball back into the area, but Derby remain strong at the back and clear away. Elmohamady and Odubajo being pushed right up their respective flanks now.
Diame just can't quite make contact with the ball when left one-on-one with Keogh following a strong run into the box. Hull well on top right now, yet their goal attempts are not exactly ticking over. Patience is clearly the Tigers' big tactic this evening.
Paul Clement's side lead 1-0 at the KC Stadium thanks to Butterfield's 18th-minute strike, which leaves the Rams at the top of the Championship table as things stand.
Martin drives to the byline and cuts the ball back into a dangerous area, but Weimann - who has three in his last four - can't quite make contact with the ball at full reach. Up the other end, Huddlestone sees his free kick deflect wide.
Carson flaps at a corner but eventually makes amends by collecting the second ball. The wet surface is not helping either keeper this evening - one for the striker's to exploit!
GOAL! HULL CITY 0-2 DERBY COUNTY (JACOB BUTTERFIELD)
It's another decent attacking move from Derby, who work the ball out to the right for Christie to swing one in, but this is all about the quality of Butterfield. Hull looked to have cleared away that initial attempt, yet the game's standout player was stood on the edge of the box where he sent a controlled finish into the bottom corner of the net. What a finish!
Diame flashes a shot wide of goal as Hull look for an instant response. This game is set up perfectly for the Rams, who can happily sit back and soak up the pressure before hitting their opponents on the break.
SAVE! A hugely disappointing half of football for Steve Bruce and his men, who have simply been second best so far. The defence, showing two enforced changes this evening, have not been able to deal with the Rams' attacking threat. Hull did almost find a route back into the game, however, as Huddlestone's swerving shot is parried away by Carson.
Diame is often finding himself in pockets of space around the 18-yard box, without really doing a great deal with the ball. Derby still trying to decide whether to sit back on what they have or push for a third before the interval.
SAVE! A fine save from Carson to deny Hull a route back into the game. Hernandez directed Maloney's pass towards the top corner, but the former England international was equal to the attempt to push it aside for a corner.
Hernandez looking much more involved now, almost finding himself through on goal only for the offside flag to be correctly raised. A good period of play for Hull, this, but it has seemingly come too late in the half for it to amount to anything.
Just the one minute of added on time at the end of this first half on Humberside, which Hull nearly make the most of. Clucas whipped in a fine cross from the left, which the Rams somehow cleared away before Hernandez could get a touch to the ball.
HALF TIME: HULL CITY 0-2 DERBY COUNTY
Derby County well in control of this top-of-the-table affair at the midway stage, then, thanks to two real crackers from Jacob Butterfield. Both strikes, separated by 16 first-half minutes, left Alan McGregor with little chance of keeping them out.
The first chance of note fell to Derby full-back Cyrus Christie, who was simply allowed to waltz his way through the hosts' makeshift backline and get a shot away which Harry Maguire did brilliantly to block. McGregor was then at full stretch to turn away George Thorne's attempt, as the Rams kept up the pressure.
The breakthrough goal then arrived 18 minutes in, as Weimann led a strong Derby counter that actually looked to have broken down right when it mattered. Butterfield was first to the loose ball inside the box, though, and tucked away into the bottom corner to make it advantage Derby.
Butterfield helped himself to a second when, once again, a half-cleared pass landed nicely into his path to calmly slot home. Hull ended the half on top to provide some hope, however, coming close through both Tom Huddlestone and the returning Abel Hernandez, only for Scott Carson to turn both efforts aside.
Hull City are without Michael Dawson for the next four weeks or so, and his absence has already been felt this evening.
Here is a quick reminder of both sets of subs, as the teams re-emerge for the second half. Bruce may well be forced into making an alteration ahead of the resumption of play.
HULL CITY SUBS: Jakupovic, Bruce, Taylor, Snodgrass, Hayden, Akpom, Aluko
DERBY COUNTY SUBS: Grant, Bryson, Bent, Russell, Baird, Pearce, Shotton
RESTART! A huge half of football ahead for both of these sides, then, as Derby look to protect their two-goal advantage. Long, long way still to go before they can celebrate their place at the top of the table.
Odubajo gets in behind the Derby backline for the first time in the half, and his cross is not properly dealt with by Keogh, who was simply happy to see Hernandez a good few yards away from the ball. City on top but need to do a little more if they are to pull one back.
Elmohamady cheekily flicks the ball on with his hand at the front post, which went undetected by the referee and his officials. That would have been contentious had the Tigers scored from the corner, but once more the set piece came to nothing.
A foul throw from Sam Clucas disrupts Hull's momentum in a rather comical manner. Derby still happy to sit back, which is a dangerous game at the moment. Not a great deal of action this half, in truth.
Good defending from Weimann, who is fulfilling his duties at both ends of the field. Surprised to see Steve Bruce keep things the same for so long, with his side desperately looking for a way through to no avail at the moment.
Butterfield shapes up to shoot, signalling a fair few gasps around the KC Stadium. Unlike his last two attempts, this one deflects wide of goal for a corner. Diame does well to head away, as a rare second-half Derby attack breaks down.
Still no save for Carson to make since the restart, and the frustration is now clear to see and hear around the KC Stadium. Odubajo fails to control a pass into his path on the right, but still Bruce is happy to stick with the current lineup.
Ince and Hendrick link up in the opposition box, but the winger's shot is blocked before it can reach McGregor's goal. All the noise coming from the away section now - understandable in the circumstances as Hull edge towards a first home defeat of the term.
CLOSE! The closest Hull have come to a breakthrough this half, as Maloney picks up the ball on the edge of the box and looks to bend one into the bottom corner. The Scotsman got hit connection all wrong, though, sending his effort a yard wide of the post with Foster jumping across.
SAVE! Hull knocking on the door, with Carson once again pulling off a huge save for his side. A loose ball fell nicely to Maloney to strike just six yards out, but he opted for power instead of precision and Carson got just the slightest of touches to the ball to help it over. The referee awarded a goal kick, yet the keeper's reaction to that decision said it all.
Christie works the ball well down the right, just waltzing through Hull's fragile defence yet again. His pullback was cut out by McGregor, who was forced into a rare bit of action. Just under 25 minutes left to play on Humberside.
DERBY COUNTY SUB! Paul Clement is the first to show his hand, bringing on Craig Bryson for two-goal hero Jacob Butterfield. Bit of a surprise choice, that, but Bryson is a more than adequate replacement in the centre of midfield.
A deflected Hernandez shot leads to another Hull corner, which Derby clear away with ease like they have done for most of the night. Bruce must surely be tempted to change things around slightly in the final quarter of this match.
Sean Maloney is in behind the Derby defence, but a heavy touch lets him down before he can pick out a teammate. Small shouts for a penalty which had very little substance behind them. A frustrating evening for Hull!
A goal will change everything, of course, yet that does not look like arriving at the moment. Chuba Akpom is readied and waiting to come on - maybe that is the change which sparks City into life? They are really running out of time now and chances are a real premium.
HULL CITY SUBS! Odubajo and Davies make way for Akpom and Sone Aluko. Jake Livermore drops into the back four in the absence of Davies, so Bruce is clearly planning on throwing everything at the visitors.
Hull currently seeing three quarters of the ball, but still not threatening their opponents enough considering how much County have sat off them. Paul Clement will be more than happy with how things have panned out in this second half, against an underwhelming Hull side.
Akpom's miscontrolls a pass into him but is lands nicely for Diame to take on the shot, only for his effort to hit a body on its way through. Just 10 more minutes for Derby to see through now.
SUBS! Both teams make another change, as Johnny Russell replaces Weimann for the visitors and Isaac Hayden comes on for Diame in the home side's latest alteration.
So Derby now just six minutes away from topping the Championship table, which is some turnaround from their slow start to the campaign. Paul Clement is well and truly settled at the iPro now, as this result goes a long way to showing.
SHOT! Hayden loses possession before the ball is played into the path of Ince on the edge of the box. The former Blackpool man opted to take on the shot despite awkward nature of it, lashing his attempt just inches wide of goal.
A corner is nodded into the back-post area by Maguire, but Clucas and Hernandez just get in each other's way when making contact with the ball. That goal will just not arrive for the hosts, meaning a rare clean sheet in this fixture for Derby.
A couple of shots-to-nothing from the home side, as we enter three minutes of added on time in Humberside. Maguire has been named as the sponsors' Man of the Match inside the ground, yet on a neutral basis that surely must go to match-winner Butterfield.
All very quiet at the moment, much like the vast majority of this second half. Maloney had the home side's best chance, which Foster was equal to. Sixty seconds or so left to go.
Half a chance for Maguire, who attacked a late set piece well but headed wide at the back post. It would only have been a consolation in the grand scheme of things, yet he should have done better from there.
FULL TIME: HULL CITY 0-2 DERBY COUNTY
So there we have it - Derby County climb to the Championship summit at the expense of opponents Hull City. It is a first defeat in 12 for the Tigers, and a first on home soil all term.
Both goals came in the first half via Jacob Butterfield, who struck two fine strikes beyond the reach of Alan McGregor to secure the win. Hull enjoyed the majority of possession in the second half, without truly troubling opposition keeper Scott Carson on a consistent basis. In the end it was a simple enough victory for Paul Clement's men, who did all the hard work in the opening 45 minutes.
Well that concludes Sports Mole's live text commentary of this evening's match. Be sure to join us tomorrow as we bring you coverage from two more fixtures in the Championship. See you then!
