With Shane Long discussing personal terms over his £12.5m move to Southampton, Hull City look set to lose a proven Premier League striker who slotted seamlessly into the close-knit environment at the KC Stadium. Here, in an interview first published in the Mail's 'Hull City 2014-15' supplement, before the transfer story broke, Long tells Philip Buckingham about his happy times with the Tigers.
Shane Long knows all about the threat of second-season syndrome.
As a youngster he was part of a Reading side that took the Premier League by storm in 2006-07 with a magnificent finish of eighth. Within 12 months, he was also part of the same team relegated back to the Championship on goal difference.
Those contrasting experiences instil a sense of caution ahead of Hull City's second term in the Premier League, but Long has every faith those same traps can be side-stepped.
"We know how hard it is to stay up and how hard it's going to be again, but the gaffer has instilled that winning mentality into the players here," said Long.
"There's a lot of players who are just too stubborn to lose at times and hopefully that will be the case this season.
"We'll look to get a good start and kick on from there. We want to look up and not down because it's not a nice feeling to be down in the bottom half of the table all season.
"You watch training and it's always competitive. Players just don't want to lose games and that goes out on to the pitch.
"There'll never be a lack of effort here and if we keep doing the right things, we'll get our rewards. I've a good feeling about this season."
This feels like a very different City side to the one that succumbed at the second attempt in 2009-10. Then the cracks were beginning to show and a failure to strengthen proved catastrophic.
At Reading it was another sorry tale. The spectacular work of one season unravelled in the next and before the Royals knew it, they were back in the Championship wondering where it had all gone wrong under Steve Coppell.
"It was a weird year at Reading because we were flying up until Christmas. Then it just all fell apart," said Long.
"I suppose we just took our foot off the pedal as a group. We probably thought that we were more or less safe."
What sets City apart from those who have stumbled has been their improvements. The summer arrivals of Jake Livermore, Robert Snodgrass, Tom Ince, Harry Maguire and Andy Robertson means the Tigers have spent the thick end of £40m in 2014 when accounting for the January acquisitions of Long and Nikica Jelavic.
Long added: "We finished lower than we probably deserved last year. There were a lot of games towards the end of the year when we should have taken more.
"Who knows, we could maybe be looking up towards the top half but hopefully we can start well and look up."
For all the money spent by Bruce, though, Long sees invaluable qualities in City's ranks. A togetherness forged by the success of the last two seasons continues to leave him surprised.
"I've always said it. Straight away when I came in I couldn't get over how close the group was," he explained.
"Normally at other clubs everyone will get on but there's little groups throughout the squad. Different nationalities and different language speakers.
"Here everyone just gets involved and it's brilliant. Any time we go for a coffee there's normally 10 or 12 lads all going.
"It's a very happy place and I think you can see that out on the pitch."
The hub of it all is seemingly the Irish contingent. Or so laments Bruce.
Long became the fifth Republic of Ireland international at the club when joining Paul McShane, David Meyler, Robbie Brady and Stephen Quinn at the KC Stadium in January.
The Scots, now standing at four with Snodgrass and Robertson in town, add to the Gaelic charm and Long said: "We're slowly taking over!
"There's five of us now so we could probably have a 5-a-side team in training.
"It's a good atmosphere to be around. At first I thought it must be because the club was new to the Premier League and that's why there was a buzz, but they're all great lads. I enjoy coming into training each day."
• This article was first published in our 48-page supplement Hull City 2014-15, in shops now priced 80p.![HullCityCover]()
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• This article was first published in our 48-page supplement Hull City 2014-15, in shops now priced 80p.
Enter the Sporting Champions AwardsHave you entered our Sporting Champions Awards? Click here to nominate an individual, coach or volunteer who has made a difference to the local sporting scene.
