Hull City manager Liam Rosenior hailed his side’s defensive resilience as they all but ended the play-off chances of Chris Wilder’s Watford.

Former Watford midfielder Ozan Tufan scored the winning goal from the penalty spot after 25 minutes.

Wilder can have no complaints as Watford lacked passion and energy, most notably in the first half, and rarely threatened Hull goalkeeper Karl Darlow.

And though Wilder’s men pressed relatively hard for an equaliser after the interval, it never looked like coming.

Spot on: Ozan Tufan scored the only goals from the penalty spot as Hull City dented Watford's play-off ambitions (Picture: Bruce Rollinson)

Mid-table Hull have little to play for, but they were resolute and strong from the outset and deserved to win as they continued a strong end to the season.

Rosenior said: “We weren’t at our free-flowing best, but what I was delighted with was a seventh clean sheet in eight.

“You need two sides to the game to be successful in the Championship: you need to play and you need to grind it out.

“I couldn’t be happier with the attitude of the players.

“It’s a real challenge to play three games in a week and for them, pretty much with the same team, to win a tough game like this means the world.”

Rosenior added: “The players really wanted to rectify what happened in midweek (the 3-1 defeat at Middlesbrough) and they did that.

“I said to the players at half-time that I wanted more and we got that.”

On Darlow, who continues to excel on loan from Newcastle, Rosenior said: “He’s been magnificent since he came in.

“He’s loving working here. Hopefully we’ll have discussions in the summer about his long-term future.”

Vaughan also caught the eye of Rosenior, who said: “I love giving young players an opportunity and Harry is a manager’s dream – he loves to learn.”

Wilder said: “That was a typical Championship game and I thought we deserved something from it.

“I thought we did what we could to try to get into the game and I thought the attitude was good. I was honest with them after the game and I told them that I thought we deserved something from it.

“I had no complaints with the penalty decision. When it’s not going for you, these things happen. We just needed a big moment and it didn’t come.”

Chris Wilder's Watford see play-off bid ended as Liam Rosenior hails 'resolute' Hull City