Carvalho, Morton, Delap and Hull City's loan stars desperate to avoid sad goodbye

Hull City have put together one of the most exciting groups of players in the Championship this season, and should things not work out on Saturday, it may well prove to be their final hurrah.

Acun Ilicali, Tan Kesler, Liam Rosenior and the club's recruitment staff have worked tirelessly since this time 12 months ago to put the building blocks in place to sign the likes of Jaden Philogene, Tyler Morton, Liam Delap and Fabio Carvalho, and they'll hope Saturday's trip to Plymouth is not the final time they wear the Black and Amber.

City know victory at Home Park is a must if they're to have any chance of finishing the season in the final play-off spot, and to do that, the Tigers must also hope Preston can cause a surprise at West Brom and secure victory at The Hawthorns.

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Should Rosenior's side overthrow Albion and finish the season in sixth spot, there would be two more games at least for a group of players that feel like they're just hitting their peak, to think this could be their last ever game together sticks in the throat, a tad.

Rosenior has overseen a squad of players who have given their all this season, who have chased hard in one of the most competitive Championship seasons in a long time and are on the cusp of securing something special. It may yet go their way, but it could also end in heartbreak.

And if they do miss out, for all the talk of progress, making big strides and anything similarly descriptive, this will hurt, it will cut deep and take some to recover from. This group of players is talented, fun to watch and plays some terrific football. It's a squad that has given us some unbelievable memories this season, too many to list here, but we'll all have our own.

Whether it be thrashing Sheffield Wednesday, winning at Leicester, the bonkers finale at Huddersfield Town or the total football display to beat Southampton and just the epic nature of Saturday's draw with Ipswich, there have been many magical moments, many of which can get lost in the humdrum of chasing a play-off place.

Watching the shortened list of City's best goals of the season at the club's awards night on Tuesday brought home just what fun this has been, and what a privilege it has been to see this side chase their dream.

Seeing Liam Delap progress into the powerful centre-forward he is, Tyler Morton's enthusiasm, Fabio Carvalho's majesty, Noah Ohio's smile and finishing prowess, Ryan Giles, Anass Zaroury, such good players, such talented performers and above all else, good human beings.

Saturday may well be the last time we see any of them in a Hull City shirt, and that's a conversation for another day. What the future holds only time - and money - will tell, but one thing is for sure, the Tigers have had a terrific crop of loan players this season, mixed in with some hugely talented players of their own.

As the saying goes, you should never fall in love with a loan player, but that can be hard, and for some City fans, the thought of not seeing Delap, Morton, Carvalho or Ohio don their famous stripes again will be a tough pull to swallow, and while the future will undoubtedly bring new faces and new hope, for the here and now, let's hope for one last hurrah because it doesn't feel like they're done just yet.