Hull City striker Josh Magennis has vented his frustration following the side’s late defeat to Huddersfield Town on Tuesday night, calling for the side to step up in the coming games.

The Tigers were twice behind at home when they welcomed the Terriers to the KCOM Stadium on Tuesday, as the Hull players failed to score goal of their own with Richard Stearman scoring an own goal for the hosts just after the hour mark.

The defeat on Tuesday was Hull’s third on the bounce in the Championship after falling to Derby County and Fulham prior to this week, which came after an impressive win over Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on New Year’s Day.

The hosts lacked any real impetus against Huddersfield and struggled to create any real chances. Speaking to the Yorkshire Post, Northern Ireland international Josh Magennis reflected on the result and performance against the Terriers, where he said: “It was frustrating. We were miles off it. At this level, if you are not at it, you will be punished.

“We have set the standards so high and this season, we have played attractive football and have a personality. That was not the case (against Huddersfield).

“It is about trying to be consistent. Even if you lose games, you have got to lose in the right way if that is possible. But we were not at the races.”

The string of defeats has seen Grant McCann’s side slump to 13th in the Championship and now find themselves eight points behind the play-off places.

However, Magennis is still confident in his and his teammates’ abilities for the rest of the season and is still hopeful of closing the gap to sixth place in the coming months. He added: “We are eight points off the play-offs and there are 17 games to go and we are nowhere near a bad team. It is just about finding consistency.

“It is important that we try and win as many as we can at home, so people have to fear coming here.

“They cannot catch us on an off-night and think we are an easy touch.

“It is something we are looking to address. Brentford play lovely football at times and it will be a big marker and one for big characters to show what we can do.”

The Tigers face a Brentford side looking to close the gap to the automatic promotion places and welcome the Bees to the KCOM Stadium having not won on home soil since before Christmas.

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The verdict

If Hull harbour any serious ambitions of breaking into the play-offs this season, they have to be picking up more consistent results, especially at home.

The performances of late have been much below the standards that McCann set earlier in the season and while injuries haven’t helped their continuity, they still have the quality to pick up points at home against sides in and around them.

Facing Brentford at the weekend is a challenge on its own, regardless of form, so Magennis is right in knowing that performances have to be there in the Championship if you want results.

The Tigers need a boost and the tough test against Brentford could be just what the side needs to boost their standards against a side they aim to be rubbing elbows with, come May.