What impact did Hull's win over QPR have?

Steve Bruce is happier after Saturday's win

How will Hull's win at home to QPR have an impact on both sides as they struggle to try and avoid relegation?

Games between promotion or relegation candidates are routinely referred to as six-pointers and one such game affected the bottom of the Premier League on Saturday.

The home side prevailed at the KC Stadium, Hull City beat Queens Park Rangers 2-1 with a goal in the last minute. How decisive will that result prove to be for both sides?

For Hull it cemented a real turnaround in their form in recent weeks - two wins over the Christmas period gave Tigers fans hope of getting out of trouble, after beating Sunderland away on Boxing Day and Everton at home on New Year's Day.

However three successive Premier League defeats followed, culminating in a terrible performance at home to Newcastle with players and even manager Steve Bruce coming under increased scrutiny.

Bruce took action a couple of days later on transfer deadline day, bringing in striker Dame N'Doye from Lokomotiv Moscow. The Tigers nearly won at Manchester City in the next game, a last minute James Milner free kick ensured the champions escaped with a point, but since then two home games have delivered two much needed victories and six points.

Crucially, in a season disrupted by injuries to key players, Bruce was able to name the same side for those two games and equally important, the two strikers both scored and made a real difference to a side that had struggled for goals earlier in the season.

Just a handful of games ago, Bruce's team were playing well, creating numerous half chances but not really looking like scoring. West Ham away was a prime example in January, when the Tigers dominated the first half but a forward line of Sone Aluko assisted by Stephen Quinn, lacked any real threat.

With a fit-again Nikica Jelavic joined by new signing N'Doye, the Tigers now have a presence in the box and targets for wing backs Robbie Brady and Ahmed Elmohamady to cross to. If Hull manage to have better luck with injuries in the second half of the season, they should have enough to survive.

For QPR, the late goal at the KC Stadium was a real kick in the teeth. They had coped well with the sending off of Joey Barton in the first half, had got themselves back into the game with a smart finish from Charlie Austin and contained the home side with some comfort in the second half, until the 89 minute.

With Harry Redknapp resigning as manager at the start of the month, Chris Ramsey gained the job on a permanent basis after seeing his side claim their first away points of the season in victory at Sunderland.

That was however their first win since beating West Brom in December, a run of seven games without a win including five defeats. While Hull's win enabled them to climb to 15th in the table, four points away from the bottom three, QPR stay on 22 points and above the relegation zone only on goal difference with Burnley and Aston Villa below them.

While Hull have benefited from the arrival of a new striker, QPR's chances of survival may rest on keeping their own star forward fit. Austin is the joint leading English striker in the Premier League (alongside Harry Kane) this season with 14 goals and if he plays in most or all of the side's remaining games, he could drag the London side away from trouble.

Three London derbies are next for QPR; at home to Arsenal and Tottenham and away to Crystal Palace. It is essential that they get some points on the board in those games if they are to keep their heads above water.