Pop Idol, he's not.

For any of you that have been living under a rock for the last few years, Hull City Football Club have taken a roller coaster ride that even the most serious coaster enthusiasts would envy. Last year they made their first top flight appearance in the history of English Football & subsequently stayed up, albeit barely. Hull City now find themselves in the bottom three & searching for what would only be their seventh win in the past 12 months when they travel to Turf Moor to face Burnley on Saturday. September 27th, 2008 seems like longer than 13 months ago as Geovanni banged in that stunning free kick to beat Arsenal, 2-1 at the Emirates.

You knew it was coming didn’t you? The second Phil “the clown” Brown took that microphone after his team stayed up on the last day of the  ’08-’09 season (by loosing to Manchester United, 1-0) & sang “don’t wanna go home”, you knew there was more to come. Fast forward the summer to more spray on tans, suicide intervention on the Humber Bridge, 2 wins from 10 to start the season, a wage bill that approaches £40 million, the recent departure of chairman & chief executive Paul Duffen & you just feel Brown’s time is limited.

According to a recent article from The Times, it’s estimated that an additional £18 million will be needed to even out the balance sheets at the KC Stadium. Success was never going to come easy & most importantly, without a price. Credit to Brown though, who for the breadth of last season stayed committed to Hull’s brand of positive football. Here is a club who made a jump, no, a leap from the bottom division of the Football League to the Premiership in just 5 seasons, a feat that is the third fastest climb to the top flight ever. Brown’s singing on the last day of the season in May was probably well deserved. But how much time does Brown have left?

Credit to Duffen as well who, on his departure, took blame for his failings in the transfer market which left him no choice but to resign. Former Hull owner Adam Pearson who saved Hull from administration in 2001 will replace Duffen. Early reports suggest Brown will soon be gone, even if he turns around Hull’s abysmal start to the season. It’s safe to say Duffen was Brown’s ally behind the scenes at Hull. Now that he’s gone, Brown’s on his own.

All eyes will be on Turf Moor this weekend to see Brown & Hull City’s performance against 11th in table Burnley. With neither team really being safe yet, it’s sure to be Hull’s 2nd relegation 6-pointer in as many weeks. There’s no place like home for Burnley as they’ve notched home wins against Manchester United, Everton, Sunderland & Birmingham this season. It’ll be another telling game in Hull’s season & an even more important match for Brown to prove his worth to his new boss.

Will Brown keep his job with a win at Turf Moor on Saturday?

or

Has his slow start to the ’09-’10 season already put the final nail in his coffin?