Brighter days beckon as Livermore shows his quality for Hull City

THE SIGHT of Jake Livermore showcasing his footballing talents in eye-catching fashion in recent weeks has been extremely gratifying for Steve Bruce.
Hull City's Jake Livermore.  Picture: Bruce RollinsonHull City's Jake Livermore.  Picture: Bruce Rollinson
Hull City's Jake Livermore. Picture: Bruce Rollinson

The pain of a tumultuous year may have weighed heavily upon the Hull City midfielder at times so far in 2015, but a welcome shaft of light has emerged ahead of his 26th birthday on Saturday.

Six months ago, there was only darkness for the ex-Tottenham midfielder as his manager can testify.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But thankfully, the journey since his suspension in May for testing positive for cocaine has been a redemptive one – and how times have changed since those torrid days of spring.

Livermore was spared a lengthy Football Association ban from the sport in September, with the governing body citing the “specific and unique nature of the circumstances” ahead of him failing a drug test which arrived shortly after the tragic death of his newborn son Jake Junior.

The Londoner returned to the first-team fold in the Capital One Cup win over Swansea on September 22 and hasn’t looked back since. Neither have the Tigers.

The East Yorkshire outfit head into the international break as the form team in the Championship and possessing one of the thoroughbred midfielders in Livermore, who earned a place in the divisional Team of the Week after an exemplary weekend display in the peerless 3-0 win over fellow high-fliers Middlesbrough.

For Bruce, the story has been a truly heartening one.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Bruce said: “Jake is a quality player. We all know that. And, of course, he hasn’t been getting over an injury.

“He’s playing now with desire and is desperate to play well and desperate to make up for the mistake he made. That’s how it looks.

“We are delighted to see him back. He’s a great lad; a really good lad, and it’s great to see him enjoying himself.

“He’s been through some dark times and he should enjoy this because he’s playing very well.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For Bruce, Livermore and the Tigers, it has been some transformation in the past six months.

It a month when the blossom was wholly absent at the KC Stadium, with Bruce – if attempting to haul Hull away from the relegation quicksand in the Premier League was not arduous enough – thrust into the sort of scenario that no managerial course can prepare you for.

Livermore was staring at the very real prospect of a possible two-year ban from professional football, with Bruce – along with his midfielder – having to pick up the pieces too.

The Tigers chief spoke of Livermore being in a ‘dark place’ and described the conversation he had when he broke the news of his failed drugs test to him as the most difficult he had ever had with a player – while admitting he felt ‘let down’ by him.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Time subsequently revealed that the circumstances which led to Livermore taking the banned substance were far from conventional – with Bruce showing contrition and understanding too.

Dealing with the loss of a newborn child will continue to represent a challenge to the midfielder on a human level, something that Bruce is the first to acknowledge.

But in terms of the depth of character and resolve that Livermore has shown to get his career back on track, the Hull chief is certainly full of admiration.

Bruce added: “Jake has obviously had his troubles but, touch wood, he keeps seeking help.

“He’s knuckled down and got on with it.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We all knew what a quality player he could be in this division and now he’s at that form he enjoyed when he first arrived here. That’s great to see.”

While few would begrudge the professional kudos that Livermore was afforded in being named in the Championship team of the week, for Hull it is very much a case of the bouquets being shared around so far this season.

As a team, Hull are greater than the sum of their parts, with their squad depth and proficiency in every department as high as any side in the Championship.

On the goalscoring front, the Tigers can boast 13 different scorers so far this term in the league, testimony to the attacking options as their disposal, so much so that the likes of Tom Huddlestone and Shaun Maloney are currently having to bide their time on the bench.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

In the defensive sphere, Hull have not conceded a goal for 512 minutes – over eight-and-half hours – and have posted five Championship clean sheets on the spin with their goals against record of eight in 16 games being the best in the Football League.

Things came together in arguably the Championship’s stand-out performance of the campaign against Boro, with Bruce eager to distribute the praise evenly.

He said: “It would be wrong to single out just one player after that performance.

“The game of football is played as a team and you don’t keep five clean sheets on the trot without being a team.

“At the minute, we’re seeing that resilience that you need to be successful.”

Related topics: