It wasn’t pretty but boy was it needed. Watford beat Hull City 1-0 tonight to move within a point of their promotion rivals in the Championship automatic places.

A defeat and the Hornets would have been seven points below the Tigers with just six games and 18 points to play for.

But Troy Deeney’s excellent first-half finish and a battling, whole-hearted display from the whole team secured Watford’s first win in four matches.

Head coach Gianfranco Zola suggested he would name his strongest team possible at the KC Stadium and he made just a solitary change; with Matej Vydra coming in for Fernando Forestieri.

A defensive error from Matthew Briggs contributed to the Hornets dropping two points on Friday and the Fulham loanee started the contest on the left of midfield, where he caused Burnley a lot of problems. Marco Cassetti was at left centre half.

Steve Bruce had indicated before the match he was going to attack Watford and his line-up suggested as much. The Tigers’ included a host of attacking options in their XI, with Jay Simpson, Gedo, George Boyd, Robert Koren and Robbie Brady starting.

And the home team were the better side early on and were applied pressure on Watford, although their only shot on goal in the opening ten minutes was a wayward, long-range effort from Alex Bruce.

Watford were being outworked and outmuscled at the start but they started to enjoy some possession around the quarter-of-an-hour mark.

Almen Abdi had a reasonably good opportunity when he was slipped in the left-hand side of the area only to then send his left-footed shot over and wide of the near post.

Watford started to control possession and Nathaniel Chalobah was pivotal to this. After a neat passage of play, Abdoulaye Faye was forced to make a last-ditch block to stop Vydra’s shot.

But the visitors were dealt a blow midway through the first half as Fitz Hall was forced off due to injury. This resulted in Lloyd Doyley coming on for his 400th appearance for the club; his arrival welcomed by the travelling supporters.

The importance of Hall was emphasised immediately as Hull won a corner and Jack Hobbs headed goalwards. It was easily held by Jonathan Bond but the Tigers’ threat at set pieces was evident.

Watford controlled possession more than Hull but it was a scrappy contest for much of the opening half an hour and neither team created much.

Then moments after going down injured, Deeney opened the scoring with another effort from outside the box. The striker shifted the ball to the right and curled a shot into the top corner from 20 yards.

Three minutes of injury time was announced as the chants of ‘we are going up’ rang out from the away end.

But Hull would have gone in level had it not been for an excellent save from Bond. Briggs and Cassetti combined to give away possession just outside their own area and another ball into the box was knocked down by a Tigers’ attacker. Boyd’s half volley was powerful but a little central and Bond got down low to direct the ball over the bar.

Hull again started the second half stronger and Bond was required once more five minutes after the restart. The home supporters in the main stand thought Jay Simpson’s shot had slipped under the body of the Watford goalkeeper but it trickled wide.

The Wales youth international was then called into action twice in quick succession. First, he held on to Brady’s powerful half volley and then moments later was forced to parry James Chester’s shot back into danger.

Briggs struggled this evening and was replaced by Daniel Pudil ten minutes into the second half.

Watford regained composure slightly after the hour mark and after their first real passage of play, Deeney almost doubled the Hornets lead as he struck powerfully at the near post, only to be denied by the strong wrist of David Stockdale.

Bond performed well but he enjoyed a little fortune as he was able to gather at the second attempt after fumbling Brady’s initial free kick.

The match was scrappy for much of the contest and the Golden Boys’ spells of possession were few and far between as Hull looked to apply pressure.

The home team were sending balls into Watford’s box with increasing regularity as the Hornets started to look a little laboured.

Zola sent on Prince Buaben in a bid to add some fresh legs. For all of the Tigers’ pressure, it took until the final five minutes for Hull to have another effort, with Simpson having a tame header easily saved.

Pudil almost got on the end of an Anya cross in Watford’s first attack for some time but then moments later, the pressure was back on.

Joel Ekstrand was excellent at the centre of the back three and he made a last-ditch block to deny Nick Proschwitz’s shot. Bond was also impressive, claiming several dangerous crosses as the clock counted down.

Watford’s promotion challenge had been dented by their poor form in the last month but they showed battling qualities tonight to hold on and move within a point of the automatic places.

Hull: Stockdale; Chester, Faye, Hobbs (Proschwitz 78); Elmohamady, Bruce (Quinn 69), Koren, Boyd, Brady; Gedo (Evans 69), Simpson.

Subs: Jakupovic, Rosenior, Cairney, Fathi.

Watford: Bond; Ekstrand, Hall (Doyley 26), Cassetti; Anya, Chalobah, Abdi, Battocchio, Briggs (Pudil 56); Deeney, Vydra (Buaben 83).

Subs: Bonham, Yeates, Geijo, Forestieri.

Attendance: 20,043 (1,290 Watford fans)

Referee: Robert Madley.