It's a quaint and enduring town, but it's not really a football league venue.  Nevertheless Boston will be in Div 3 again next season, but on this showing City won't.  Mike Scott can almost touch promotion after this comfortable win.

A mild and clear Wednesday night (when was the last time we played a league game on a non-holiday-period Wednesday?) saw City ease past their Lincolnshire foes with relatively few alarms.  Boston did have good spells in the first ten minutes of each half, and rattled a few cages when they scored one with 25 minutes to go, but generally the Tigers were on top and able to reverse the home team's onslaught, creating several chances in the closing minutes that could've made the scoreline look very healthy - but 2-1 reflects the balance of the game, so we'll settle for that.

Stop playing for a draw, Peter Taylor.  What a load of cobblers that is, I'm sick of hearing it.  So is Taylor, judging by the adventurous formation he chose to halt the progress of the the Pilgrims (both teams entered this fixture with 3 wins on the spin under their belt):

Myhill
Thelwell  Joseph  Hinds  Delaney
Marshall  Green  Lewis  Elliott
Allsopp  Burgess

With the psychological barrier of removing Delaney temporarily from a centre back berth hurdled, and with Thelwell restored to right side, the back four took on a more solid and dependable demeanour.  Green rose to challenge in centre midfield superbly, and was our man of the match as well as carrying the woeful Lewis, who had another total Melton (I don't rate Lewis, he's shite).  Marshall didn't get forward much so we kind of played with two right backs, but that was OK because Boston's chief threat was ex-Bournemouth wide man Danny Thomas (who shone for ten minutes, then disappeared as Thelwell and Marshall dominated him comprehensively).  Ben and Danny both looked hungry up front and played excellently.

Boston had the slight upper hand early on, they had clearly been sent out with a resounding battle cry in their ears.  Forward Douglas scurried around powerfully and offered a cheery elbow to anyone who came tackling, and Hinds was especially brave to keep his head at this time - both psychologically and literally, such was the force of Douglas's bent-arm prods.  Myhill tipped over a Thomas free kick after four minutes and moments later Allsopp was booked for a challenge on the edge of our box wide right, but the resulting free-kick was cleared.  After eight minutes the combative Bennett in midfield tripped Allsopp as he surged through with the ball, but only a ticking off was meted out when a yellow was perhaps warranted.  Then Thomas eased past Marshall and Thelwell to set up ex-Linc Cropper whose shot was high and wide.

The match was exciting but little real goalscoring threat was emerging from all the huffing and puffing.  So when City won a free-kick 20 yards out after 18 minutes a goalscoring chance was welcomed.  Stuart Green diligently lined up the ball for a right foot shot as Bost keeper Bastock arranged his wall.  The ref's whistle blew and the entire crowd awaited Green's effort - then from nowhere Elliott scurried up to the ball and thumped a low left foot drive straight past the wall and a bemused Bastock.  A great piece of opportunism (it didn't appear to be a training ground routine) was rewarded and Elliott cartwheeled towards the City bench in celebration.

One goal to the good, City now sought to slow the game down, so much so that Myhill was eventually ticked off by the ref for time wasting when taking a goal kick.  On half an hour Thelwell crossed from the right and Burgess's header had accuracy but not power, allowing Bastock to scramble across and save inside his right post.  Then Boston won a corner and ex-Tiger Greaves rose above the defence and thumped a decent header goalwards, forcing Myhill to tip over.  Nearer to half time and Allsopp found himself unmarked with a clear shot on goal, but Bastock blocked adeptly and the chance disappeared.  The game was flowing and enjoyable, and as half-time came and went the expected City powerhouse second half was keenly anticipated.

It didn't take long.  From City's normally useless kick-off routine (pretend it's going left, lump it right, see what happens) stumpy left-back Chapman stumbled and could only head the ball off for a corner from his prone position.  The corner was taken by Green, cleared back to him and his deep cross was headed over narrowly by Burgess.  But for ten minutes after that Boston came forward menacingly and threatened an equaliser.  They even got one after 52, an unchallenged Ellender header from a free-kick, but the kindly linesman raised his flag for offside so it didn't count.  Douglas turned Hinds sharply in the box and flashed a shot just wide at the near post.  An equaliser seemed on the cards.

Then a moment of greatness turned the tide.  A Bost was rampaging down the right wing but Hinds covered across and executed a magnificent sliding tackle that dumped the Bost into the advertising hoardings and saw Hinds rise with the ball at his feet.  He then thumped a fine 60 yard pass into Allsopp's path and the threat was such that Greaves dumped the Aussie on his arse and saw yellow.  This moment seemed to bring new urgency to the Tigers and pretty soon Joseph swung a defensive free kick up to Burgess 25 yards out, Ben flicked the ball on to the pacy Allsopp and Danny eased past his marker and drilled a low shot past Bastock for 2-0.  A bit route one, but breathtaking simplicity and a surgically accurate execution.

Boston didn't lie down though a five minutes later they got one goal back as a cross from their right was not dealt with by the City defence and Ellender swept a low shot past Myhill from about 10 yards out - he didn't appear to be noticeably marked from my distant vantage point.

The substitutions then begun.  Boston manager Evans duly withdrew most of his defence and brought on attackers, while the tiring Allsopp was replaced by the willing Walters.  The by-now anonymous Marshall was replaced by the equally anonymous France.  Elliott was booked for a dive.  Boston threw everyone forward for a couple of corners, including keeper Bastock for the second one.  But they didn't really carve many decent chances (one header was at the goal, but lacked power and was easily pouched by Boaz).  In the closing moments City had three gilt edged chances but Green, Walters then Green again all shot at Bastock as the Boston defence gaped wide open.  Green had a further chance in injury time but hit the outside of the stanchion.

And that was it.  Four wins in a row for the Tigers, at the business end of the season.  Excellent players.  Excellent management.  Going up.  Simple as.

HULL CITY (4-4-2): Myhill; Thelwell, Hinds, Joseph, Delaney; Marshall, Green, Lewis, Elliott; Burgess, Allsopp.  Subs: France (for Marshall, 75), Walters (for Allsopp, 76), Forrester, Holt, Musselwhite.

Goals: Elliott 19, Allsopp 61

Booked: Allsopp, Elliott

Sent Off: None

BOSTON UNITED: Bastock, Beevers, Greaves, Ellender, Chapman, Noble, Holland, Bennett, Thomas, Cropper, Douglas.  Subs: Thompson (for Holland, 64), Hurst (for Douglas, 74), Hocking (for Chapman, 84), Croudson, Clarke.

Goals: Ellender 66

Booked: Beevers, Bennett, Greaves

Sent Off: None

REFEREE: P Taylor

ATTENDANCE: 4,741