Kyle Joseph scored twice in the early stages as Hull kept themselves sixth in the Sky Bet Championship with a 3-1 victory over 10-man Millwall at the Den.

This was the Tigers' second straight win and this was an encounter they largely controlled as they went back above Stoke after their victory earlier on Saturday.

It was a frustrating afternoon for the promotion-chasing Lions, however, as they lost for the first time in five games to drop to fourth, while they also lost top scorer Femi Azeez to a straight red card in the second half.

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Millwall raced out of the traps and were almost ahead with just 45 seconds played when Tristan Crama's shot from outside the box needed to be pushed behind by Hull goalkeeper Ivor Pandur.

Before two minutes were on the clock, Pandur was tested again as he kept out Mihailo Ivanovic's effort before beating home captain Jake Cooper to the rebound.

Having survived these early scares, Hull took the lead in the sixth minute when Mohamed Belloumi's cross found the unmarked Joseph who had the simple task of knocking into the bottom corner.

Ra'ees Bangura-Williams tried to provide an immediate reply for the hosts when his rising shot was tipped over by Pandur, who had had a very busy start to his afternoon.

At the other end, the Tigers were clinical as they doubled their lead in the 13th minute when Amir Hadziahmetovic played Liam Millar in behind down the left and his ball across the face of goal allowed Joseph to tap in his second.

It almost got even better for Hull when Belloumi had a shot beaten away by Millwall goalkeeper Max Crocombe, who then denied Regan Slater a sumptuous individual goal.

The impressive Belloumi then bent an effort narrowly over after cutting in from the right as the visitors did not sit back on their two-goal lead as the match reached half-time.

The Lions finally created another opportunity when Aidomo Emakhu's cross reached Azeez at the back post, but his effort was pushed out by Pandur.

Their chances of mounting a comeback looked to have taken a critical hit after 76 minutes when Azeez was shown a straight red card for an off-the-ball incident with Joseph.

However, they were back in the game four minutes later when a superb pass by Alfie Doughty put Emakhu in behind and he kept his composure by finishing into the far corner for his first goal of the season.

But Hull finally finished the game once and for all in the 88th minute when Lewie Coyle's terrific cross was guided in by Oli McBurnie's header - with Millwall boss Alex Neil being booked for his protests in the aftermath.

The managers

Millwall's Alex Neil:

"It's a key component in the game because it happens before I make my changes.

"There were over 30 minutes to go and then I think it's seven minutes at the end of the game [for stoppages], so it was nearly 40 minutes for us to find two goals.

"We find a goal when we're at 10 men, when it's 2-0, so I'm pretty confident we would have had more opportunities, more chances and potentially got something from the game.

"Under any circumstances in any game, in any rulebook you want to look at, that is a sending-off.

"I went to see the referee, I've told him my thoughts and my opinions on it - that won't change, I've seen it back.

"It's the most blatant sending-off you'll ever see, and I'm not really one who runs about going 'we want bookings', but it's a sending-off whatever way you want to cut it."

Hull's Sergej Jakirovic:

"Every time is a very important three points, especially here, Millwall away. It's not easy, they're a very demanding team.

"I think that we started the game slow, but after our transitions we put them under pressure, especially Kyle scoring a fast two goals, and we were more calm on the ball and we won a lot of duels in midfield, so we were very good in the first half.

"In the second half, we tried to search for a third goal because you never know at 2-0 - if it's 2-1 then everything will really explode here.

"After the red card it was easier for us, but I was not so pleased with how we reacted after having an extra man because we conceded a goal and then everything gets open.

"After the third goal, it was obvious that it's finished, so a great three points and the boys deserve to celebrate."

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