Kevin Kilbane insists Hull is his priority.

Hull’s midfielder, Kevin Kilbane, insist that he would be looking whole-heartedly about beating Fulham on Monday night. However, he along with his countrymen Stephen Hunt and Paul McShane will take time out from the Tigers’ preparations for the evening kick-off by watching his country’s play-off draw.

Kilbane won his 100th cap for the Republic of Ireland last week and has been an integral part of the Irish side over the past decade. Admitting that the presentation of the 100 cap almost moved him to tears, he said “I’ve just been very fortunate the manager has picked me and I’ve managed to stay relatively injury-free throughout my whole career. But when you are in the side it gives you confidence and it is pleasing he has shown faith in me to play every game.”

Meanwhile, the most pressing concern for Hull is pulling themselves out of the bottom three of the Premier League. The Tigers lifted some of the pressure starting to grow on manager Phil Brown after a poor start to the season by beating Wigan a fortnight ago. That 2-1 success was only the club’s third in the league in 2009 after a last-gasp win at Fulham in March and a single-goal defeat of Bolton in August.

The winger insist that his top priority is Hull’s victory and recalling his last trip to Fulham said” It wasn’t a vintage performance but on the night we were very solid and I would certainly take the same again. It was my first win in a Hull City shirt, which was very pleasing for me.”

Kilbane, who has proved his versatility at Hull by playing in central and wide positions in defence and midfield, could be joined on the field on Monday by Jimmy Bullard.

Hull’s record signing is hoping to make his long-awaited comeback, almost nine months after suffering a serious knee injury, against his former club. Bullard has played just 37 minutes of first-team action since his £5million move from Fulham in January. “Certainly having him back on the training ground has been a big plus over the last few weeks. And he feels he has got something to prove because he got injured straight away,” adds Kilbane.