Ruben Selles refused to castigate his Hull players after a limp performance in a 1-0 loss at Watford left the Tigers still in danger of relegation.
Moussa Sissoko netted the only goal early in the second half to prevent City from moving clear of their relegation rivals.
Hull finished Tuesday in the same position in the table as they had been when they kicked off – 19th.
Stoke moved level on 44 points thanks to a draw with second-bottom Luton, however, while Derby and Cardiff, the clubs in 21st and 22nd places respectively, each moved to 42 points with draws of their own.
It could have been worse therefore but a timid display suggested Hull have much hard work still to put in to reach safety.
“The result was not what we wanted,” Selles said. “We were competitive but we lacked a little bit of cleanness in the final third – the final pass, the final finish.
“Sometimes you don’t get the result you want. We need to get more from the games we play. When I came in we were rock bottom. We had to fight for everything and we’re still in that fight.
“We are trying and we are showing that we are competitive. There are fine margins in the game and we need to keep fighting.
“There was no lack of urgency. We had an emergency situation in the first 20 or 30 seconds with a shot from 30 metres (from Edo Kayembe) that hit our bar but we managed to get back into the game.
“The second half started the same way, but we got back into the game. We didn’t create that final moment and we need to continue to develop our performances in the final third.”
The game’s only goal arrived in the 55th minute when Caleb Wiley, the 20-year-old Chelsea loanee, exchanged passes with Rocco Vata down the left and crossed for Sissoko to leap and flick home from close range.
Watford manager Tom Cleverley hailed former France midfielder Sissoko, who is now 35, for his all-round performance as well as his goal.
“I thought he was outstanding all night,” he said. “He is an inspiration to the young players on how to live your life and what an elite player looks like.
“You only have to look at his international caps to see that. We have senior heads in there but Moussa is the flag-bearer. I couldn’t be more proud of a team that has three teenagers.
“In the second half we came out with a spark, got the goal and then managed the game really well.
“We have played a lot better than that this season and not got maximum points, especially recently, but we have got to look at what we are working with – players who have not played many games in their careers. They will all learn from this experience.”
The win revived Watford’s slim hopes of making the play-offs.
“Until it is mathematically out of the question we will keep pushing for that,” Cleverley said. “I want this group to be the one that gets this club back on an upwards trajectory.”
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