STEVE Bruce has good reason to remember his wedding anniversary on February 23 of last year.
Rather than celebrating the landmark date with wife Janet, Bruce instead fielded a telephone call from Wolverhampton Wanderers informing him an offer to take charge at Molineux no longer stood. Thanks, but no thanks.
Fourteen months on from the snub, gratification will belong exclusively to Bruce tonight.
While Wolves have tumbled out of the Premier League to stand uncomfortably close to the League One precipice, Bruce's quiet resurrection at the KC Stadium sees him and Hull City on the brink of the top flight.
Heading back to the ground he almost called home for the first time tonight, the 52-year-old knows a 12th away victory of the season – a feat not managed by a City side since 1965-66 – would prove a personal point in the Black Country.
But with automatic promotion locked firmly in his sights, Bruce has grown increasingly appreciative of the hand fate played him.
"That's football," he explained. "It didn't happen for whatever reason and we've all moved on.
"I've come to Hull and I couldn't honestly have wished for any more from this club.
"They've been fantastic, the owners and the players, and now our only focus is on finishing this off.
"Of course, it is satisfying that things have come together so well in our first year. All the credit has to go to my staff and the players.
"This has been our first year together and everyone has bought into what we wanted to do. The lads who have come in and also the lads we inherited.
"This is a good bunch and if there is any praise to be had then the players deserve it. They have got the club in a great position but now we have to push on and capitalise."
Wolves' loss has undeniably been City's gain. In the year that has passed since Bruce's interview by the Molineux board, a desperate tailspin shows few signs of being arrested.
Terry Connor, the man favoured ahead of Bruce, was replaced by Stale Solbakken after relegation from the top flight last summer, before Dean Saunders was appointed leader of a salvage operation in January.
Saturday's 3-1 loss at home to relegation rivals Huddersfield Town brought an alarming fall to 23rd in the Championship and again leaves Wolves two points adrift of safety with four games remaining.
An anxious mood will be guaranteed at Molineux tonight and, while wary of the home side's dangers, Bruce knows a repeat of his team's winning performance at Ipswich can inspire a fourth consecutive away victory.
"Wolves are a club with great history and tradition," he said. "They've got a big fan base and that brings a lot of expectation.
"They will be deeply hurting and what's happened there in the last year, it's a very difficult time for them.
"We're under no illusions about the challenge we face there. They're a side that's full of players who have played in the Premier League and they'll be fired up for a reaction.
"But it's a difficult game for them as well. We've got the finishing line in sight but we're still capable of playing some lovely football.
"The first half at Ipswich reminded me what we were capable of and what put us in this position."
Tonight's trip to Wolves begins a trio of games against teams in the relegation places. Friday night's clash at home to rock-bottom Bristol City could feasibly see promotion on offer, before a derby against Barnsley, back in 22nd, follows eight days later.
A final day game at home to Cardiff, who need a point from Charlton to seal promotion tonight, could be another favourable fixture for the Tigers.
But Bruce countered: "We've got the three bottom teams to play and that should be fantastic for any side chasing promotion.
"But anyone who does think like that has clearly not taken much notice of the Championship this season."
