Source: Eurosport
Brown wants next step on learning curve
Phil Brown regards Hull's survival last season as his finest hour - but is determined to avoid a repeat of their nailbiting escape from relegation.
Hull made quite an impact in their first year of Barclays Premier League football but ultimately only beat the drop on a dramatic final afternoon of the campaign.
As the Tigers celebrated their survival - which had originally been their only aim - the manner of it did not matter and Brown felt its attainment had eclipsed even the previous season's play-off success. But the 50-year-old knows mistakes were made along the way that must be ironed out to prevent the forthcoming campaign becoming another struggle.
"It was my greatest achievement," said Brown of last season. "But in the back of my mind I always thought about what was going wrong, what was going right and what I could learn from.
"There were one or two things we did wrong and certainly one or two things we did right but I think the whole experience is the learning curve for me. But we certainly have to improve to avoid that kind of day again. What we can improve on are clean sheets, goals from midfield and goals from strikers.
"We have a squad here that two years ago was a Championship squad. We improved it to be a Premier League squad and we are hopefully going to improve it to be a mid-table Premier League squad this year. When we do strengthen the team - and that is the important part - I'll be looking forward to the season with great optimism."
