Hull City and Millwall played out a goalless draw in the first leg of their Championship playoff semi-final at the MKM Stadium on Friday night, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of Monday's second leg at The Den.
The match was high on tension but low on clear chances, with the best opportunity falling to Hull's Mohamed Belloumi, whose early effort struck the post. Millwall thought they had snatched a late winner when Ryan Leonard bundled the ball home in the 87th minute, but the goal was ruled out for a foul by Tristan Crama on Charlie Hughes.
Millwall manager Alex Neil expressed frustration at the disallowed goal, calling the decision "really soft." He added, "I thought we were the better side. If you'd said to me we'd have one game at home to get to a playoff final and it was all square, I'd have taken it."
Hull boss Sergej Jakirovic was content with the draw, saying: "I expected a game like this. It was a big battle all over the pitch. I think it's a fair result but it's half-time."
Both teams introduced substitutes in the final 20 minutes, with Yu Hirakawa impressing for Hull and Barry Bannan giving Millwall a lift. The second leg at The Den on Monday will decide who advances to the playoff final at Wembley.
