Hopefully Hull will win promotion to the Premier League and sign George Boyd permanently.

No offence, but it would good to see the back of both of them, assuming Huddersfield Town remain in the Championship, of course.

That’s still not certain after this defeat, and victories for four of the sides who were below them before Saturday’s games, left Mark Robins’ men 19th and just two points above the drop zone.

It could be even worse come tomorrow’s evening’s tough-looking match at Bolton, because depending on today’s results, Town could be one of the dreaded bottom three by the time they sink their studs into Lancastrian turf.

But let’s look on the bright side – there are fixtures to come among a number of sides who are also in the equation at the wrong end of the division, starting with Saturday’s visit of Peterborough.

And it could be argued Town, while pretty disappointing, deserved a point against the second-placed team.

While they were very hard to break down, the Tigers seldom roared in this clash, and created only a handful of clear-cut chances on boss Steve Bruce’s first return to Huddersfield since his sacking by Town more than 12 years ago.

What a pity one of them fell to the always impressive Boyd, who is freshly capped by Scotland and had already scored a long-range stunner against Town as one of a double in Peterborough’s 3-1 win at London Road back in October.

Bruce swooped to sign the 27-year-old on loan with a view to a permanent move after a proposed January transfer window switch to Nottingham Forest broke down because of a query over the former Stevenage man’s ocular capacity.

Without being flippant, there didn’t seem to be much wrong with his sight either earlier in the season, when he lobbed Alex Smithies from just inside the Town half, or two days ago, when he raced onto Jay Simpson’s well-placed low, diagonal through ball, held off the challenge of Peter Clarke and lashed a left-foot shot past the keeper.

Just 36 seconds into the second half, it was the one piece of telling marksmanship in the match, and it meant Hull, having set up with three centre-backs and deployed Bruce’s son Alex as a spoiling midfielder, could keep men behind the ball even more.

The onus was very firmly on Town to find a way through the banks of amber, and with a bobbly John Smith’s pitch doing nothing to help, there was seldom enough variety, or quality in the deliveries to really stretch a defence well marshalled by Senegalese powerhouse Abdoulaye Faye.

With Hull’s wing-backs Ahmed Elmohamady and the excellent Robbie Brady pushing high up the pitch and Boyd dropping deep to help out, a home midfield in which Adam Clayton and Oliver Norwood struggled to make an impression all too often appeared to be outnumbered.

Like Oscar Gobern and Neil Danns, James Vaughan worked extremely hard but was unable to find the target with either of his two genuine efforts, a header and an overhead kick.

And Jermaine Beckford was all too easily contained as he returned from international action with Jamaica to start at the expense of Danny Ward.

Both Ward and Sean Scanell were introduced from the bench as Robins tried to spark up the supply lines.

But neither could make their mark as Town suffered a sixth home defeat – and Hull clinched a double over them.

RUN OF THE BALL:

6mins: Jay Simpson’s volley from David Meyler’s cross is well held by Alex Smithies.

9mins: Ahmed Elmohamady’s loose pass frees Neil Danns, but the midfielder shoots wide.

20mins: Oliver Norwood sets up James Vaughan for a curling shot which is saved by David Stockdale.

34mins: Anthony Gerrard’s well-timed sliding clearance denies Simpson a simple tap-in from Robert Koren’s delivery.

45+1min: Robbie Brady fires over from a 30-yard free-kick.

46mins: It’s 1-0 Hull as Simpson’s low diagonal pass splits the home defence and frees George Boyd, who lashes in a rising left-foot shot for his fourth goal in six games for Steve Bruce’s side.

54mins: Vaughan’s header from Jack Hunt’s cross goes wide.

56mins: This time it’s Danns who heads wide from a Hunt centre.

57mins: Vaughan tries an overhead kick from Oscar Gobern’s ball in, but it’s off target.

66mins: Smithies denies Boyd a double as he take aim from Meyler’s cross.

88mins: Town have a promising free-kick 20 yards out after a foul on Vaughan by Jack Hobbs, but Danny Ward fires over.

90+4mins: Times is running out and as Town launch a last attack, keeper Stockdale drops the ball, only for Danns’ shot to be blocked.