Tom Huddlestone missed a 60th-minute penalty as Hull City failed to kick off their Europa League journey with a win in a 0-0 draw with Trencin in Zilina this evening.
Huddlestone fluffed his lines and saw his spot kick saved by Milos Volesak on the hour mark as City failed to draw first blood in their third-round qualifier.
Hull, playing in European competition for the first time in their 110-year history, began the better of the sides and should have marked the occasion by scoring after eight minutes.
The Premier League outfit forged a swift counter-attack through Ahmed Elmohamady, whose cross was met by the head of Sone Aluko but the striker nodded straight at Volesak.
Despite enjoying a wealth of possession, Hull failed to convert their territorial dominance into goals as David Meyler and Shane Long both spurned good chances with wayward headers.
Steve Bruce - managing his 100th game for the Tigers - should have presided over the club's first-ever European goal when they were awarded a penalty when Long was hauled down.
However, the former Tottenham Hotspur man missed his attempt from 12 yards before somehow managing to blaze the rebound over the bar with the goal at his mercy.
The Slovakian outfit nearly nicked the victory with two minutes remaining as Karol Mondek saw his deflected effort whistle narrowly over the bar, but Hull held on to mark their introduction to continental football in lukewarm fashion.
Shane Callaghan
