The former Wigan striker came off the bench on the opening day to net the decisive goal as the Tigers claimed a momentous 2-1 triumph over Fulham in front of a record crowd at the KC Stadium.

It continued an amazing success rate from the bench for the Leeds-born forward with six of his nine goals for City last season having come as a substitute.

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Brown believes Folan's pace and power means he is ideally suited to making an impact late in a game when opposition defences are tiring and is backing the striker to thrive in the top flight.

The City manager said: "Caleb Folan won't want to hear the 'super-sub' tag too much this year, but if he does then what a great sub to have on the bench. A guy who can come on for the last 30 minutes with his power, pace, height, stature and goalscoring ability.

"I looked at our bench and was really pleased at the options that I had. I know the players won't necessarily want to hear that, but the likes of Craig Fagan came on and made an impact on the game. Peter Halmosi also made an impact, and obviously Caleb got the winning goal."

Folan joined City a little under 12 months ago from Wigan Athletic, becoming the club's first ever £1m signing in the process. A succession of niggling injuries dogged his first few months at the KC Stadium but after scoring his first goal in December, he went on to become an important member of the squad as Hull clinched promotion via the play-offs.

The arrival of Marlon King and Geovanni during the summer meant Folan had to be content with a place on the bench for this season's opener but, after netting a dramatic winner against Fulham, the keen graphic designer and painter has designs on securing a permanent starting role.

The 25-year-old said: "There is no way of getting away from the 'super-sub' tag at the moment, especially when I come on and score.

"When on the bench, the hope is to come on and make an impact so I am pleased to get a goalscoring start.

"I would imagine the manager is happy with the performance and maybe he will have a tough time with selection next week. But that is what it is all about at this level."

Fulham manager Roy Hodgson admitted his side had struggled to cope with Hull during the second half, adding that they would have to learn how to deal with teams who play a more direct brand of football.

He said: "Hull played much more aggressively in the second half and played a lot of long balls into the penalty area.

"They pressured us well, obviously people were under pressure with balls being knocked down in midfield and they were very quick to push up, pressurise it and force errors."

One man who did not agree with this assessment, however, was Brown with the City chief being quick to counter the claim on being told what his counterpart had said.

The Tigers manager said: "I thought we played more football than that myself.

"I thought we showed that our fitness levels in the second half were superior to the opposition's, and if you want to talk about direct football, in the last 10 or 12 minutes of the game (defender Brede) Hangeland was playing centre forward for them."

Fulham had taken the lead after just eight minutes when Seol Ki-Hyeon was afforded sufficient space to head past Boaz Myhill from close range.

Going behind rocked the home side with the Londoners creating a host of chances until the game was transformed by Hull drawing level on 22 minutes thanks to a wonderful strike from debutant Geovanni.

Despite both sides creating several chances in a refreshingly open encounter, the deadlock remained until just eight minutes from the end when Folan swept a cross from Craig Fagan into the net after Fulham defender Paul Konchesky had been caught in possession.

It ensured a dream start for the Tigers in their quest to beat the drop in the Premier League.

Brown, who thanks to his previous role as Sam Allardyce's assistant at Bolton Wanderers, knows from experience how important a good start can be to a side's survival prospects.

He said: "Any team in the Premier League, whether they be Bolton or Blackburn or Fulham, we are all after a good start to the season.

"Roy Hodgson will say the same. He will have been looking to get points on the board today. It doesn't matter who you are."