STEVE Bruce believes Swansea City's success story of the last decade should be held up as the perfect blueprint for Hull City to replicate in the years to come.
Just 10 years after meeting in the fourth tier of English football, the two clubs meet for the first time in the Premier League at the Liberty Stadium tonight.
While it was the Tigers who won the race to reach the top flight first in 2008, it has been Swansea who have since overtaken tonight's visitors.
After their own promotion to the Premier League in 2011, continued growth brought a top-10 finish and glory in the Capital One Cup under Michael Laudrup last season.
A place in the Europa League has been Swansea's reward this season and though that juggling act has contributed towards inconsistencies in their domestic season, Bruce is a fully-fledged admirer of a club that fought relegation to the Conference as recently as 2003.
"They've done it their way and Swansea are an unbelievable success story," said Bruce.
"It's a group of supporters and their chairman who have had a great vision. You have to compliment them for the way they've done it and the way they play.
"It'll be a really difficult game as they've come on leaps and bounds over the last few years. If we could copy them over the next few it would be fantastic."
Swansea's rise up the divisions was set in motion by Roberto Martinez, built upon by Brendan Rodgers and is now being taken to another level under Laudrup. With a supporters' trust also owning 20 per cent of the club, the success enjoyed at the Liberty Stadium is made all the more unique.
"They've been a leading club if you like, similar in stature to ourselves and in the way they've done it over the years," added Bruce.
"I saw a documentary on them a couple of weeks ago and where they were 10 years ago it's quite remarkable what they've achieved.
"A big pat on the back needs to go to all of them who had the vision and the foresight to see it through.
"The way they play hasn't changed over the last five or six years. They're all comfortable on the ball, good in possession and they have some very good players. That's got to be the way forward for us. Teams like Wigan, who were up here for eight years before they slipped out, West Brom, Swansea, Southampton, they're all clubs you can look at.
"It's a difficult league but these clubs are the ones we'd love to follow if we possibly can."
City are certainly showing the first signs of emulating those who have become part of the Establishment.
Seventeen points from the first 14 games has kept heads well above the water line, but Bruce is keen to see a dependency on home form continue.
Only three points, collected in a 3-2 win over Newcastle in September, have been mustered away from the KC Stadium this season. However, Swansea are the first side not in the top eight that City will have travelled to this evening.
He added: "We knew it was going to be difficult when the fixture list came out. Chelsea first up, then Manchester City. We thought 'can this be any more difficult?' The pleasing thing is that in all of those games we've shown we can compete at this level.
"We've not had the results we would like but we've competed. That's our aim. It's always difficult, no matter who you are, to go away in the Premier League and win a game. Certainly when you look at the teams we've played it's been even harder."
