Kicking off their eighth straight season in the second tier of English football, Preston could not find a clinical edge against promoted Wigan Athletic last week and were forced to settle for a point at the DW Stadium.
Ryan Lowe’s side went down to 10 men late on, when Ched Evans was dismissed for a badly timed tackle, and ultimately found themselves frustrated by an industrious home side.
Having lost last season’s star striker Cameron Archer over the summer, as he returned to parent club Aston Villa, the Lilywhites have brought in two Republic of Ireland
internationals to bolster their attack, but neither Troy Parrott nor ex-Hull winger Robbie Brady were able to make a crucial contribution on their debut.
After recording consecutive 13th placed finishes in the Championship, Preston will surely count themselves among numerous contenders for a shot at the playoffs this term, during Lowe’s first full season in charge.
One of several wins since the former Plymouth manager took the reins at Deepdale last December came against Hull in February, when Archer struck the only goal to gain revenge for a 4-1 loss to the Tigers on the first day of their 2021-22 campaign.
Back in front of their home fans for the first time in 2022-23, North End now aim to right that wrong and build an unbeaten run.
The Tigers had to fight back from a goal behind at the MKM Stadium, but showed plenty of character to make a winning start to the campaign.
Both goals came from summer signings, as Ozan Tufan and Jean Michael Seri – the latter with a decisive stoppage-time strike – found the net on their league debuts.
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In fact, the goalscoring duo were among eight new arrivals at the club this summer, several coming from the Turkish Super Lig due to the transfer market manoeuvrings of owner Acun Ilicali.
Manager Shota Arveladze has been furnished with a squad featuring other fresh faces, such as Tobias Figueiredo, Benjamin Tetteh and Oscar Estupinan, so will be in no doubt that his bosses are targeting the top six.
After a rocky ride in recent years, such expectation may seem misplaced, but Hull will aim to continue a bright start by repeating their Deepdale win of last year, ahead of a midweek trip to Bradford in the EFL Cup.
