Luke Williams | The players got what they deserved for their grit and effort

Luke Williams hailed the grit and determination of his Swansea City side after they secured his first league win as head coach with a 1-0 victory over play-off chasing Hull City at the MKM Stadium.

The Swans took all three points home from East Yorkshire for the first time since 2014 thanks to Liam Cullen’s 11th-minute strike.

The forward swept home a left-footed effort from Josh Tymon’s low corner and the visitors had other opportunities to extend their advantage.

But the Swans also defended stoutly in a fine all-round team performance, with Tymon, Jay Fulton, Nathan Wood and Przemyslaw Placheta among those to catch the eye.

And Williams felt his side deserved the spoils for the effort and quality they showed.

“I am delighted. To win and get a clean sheet are two things that are perfect, but inside that was the grit and determination of the players who showed they are fighting for their club,” he said.

“I think that is equally as important (as the win and clean sheet), because the opposition are an excellent side, so to come here and keep a clean sheet is a tall order on its own.

“But then to create chances and score was great, we did what we set out to do in the week and we got the job done.

“We made some good openings, which was encouraging. They had good moments too because they are a good side, but it was not a smash and grab, we deserved something from the game and we got it.

“We defended well too, it felt like there were about 50 players in the box at the end. They thew everything at us, they had a six-and-a-half foot goalkeeper up in the box trying to get them a goal.

“We needed to stand up to that, and we did that brilliantly.”

And Williams also praised the work done by assistant head coach Alan Sheehan and head of goalkeeping Martyn Margetson in preparing the set-piece routine that allowed Cullen to peel away from his marker to score the winner.

“It’s something the players worked on with Alan Sheehan in the week,” he added.

“I just watch on in awe because he is a genius and then the players have to deliver on the actions they have been shown, and they did that immaculately and it was enough to win us the game."