Hull City and Blackburn Rovers never saw what Fulham have of Tom Cairney | OneFootball

Tom Cairney has displayed his talents for Fulham over the years but neither Hull City nor Blackburn Rovers saw the best of his ability

Fulham ace Tom Cairney is a well known figure among Premier League supporters, given the fact that he has consistently plied his trade in the top-flight for the Cottagers ever since their promotion from the Championship in 2022.

But before the west London club were the stable top tier outfit they are today under Marco Silva, he also played for Fulham sides who were relegated from the Premier League following the 2018/19 and 2020/21 seasons.

While the Scotland international has made over 120 top-flight appearances, it is Championship fans who will hold him in higher regard. The best campaign of his career to date came during the 2016/17 second tier term, in which he notched a phenomenal return of 13 goals and 10 assists, which helped the Cottagers secure a play-off spot.

But before he joined the Whites during the summer of 2015, and subsequently became a stalwart at Craven Cottage, he played in the Championship for Blackburn Rovers, as well as in both the second tier and the Premier League for Hull City.

Hull City and Blackburn Rovers did not get to experience the Fulham version of Tom Cairney

The Fulham faithful will view Cairney as a terrific servant to their club, who frequently displayed moments of genius during the club's Championship days, and continues to be a reliable player in the top-flight.

However, neither Hull nor Blackburn supporters will view the midfielder's exploits in the same light as that of Cottagers fans, as he was unable to produce the same sort of numbers he has displayed for the west London side while he was with either the Tigers or Rovers.

After spending most of his youth career in the Leeds United academy, Cairney moved to Hull in 2007, and made his first senior appearance for the Tigers during the 2009/10 Premier League season.

He scored one goal in just 11 top-flight outings, as well as one goal in two EFL Cup appearances, and would have been viewed as a bright young spark in an otherwise poor Hull side who faced relegation to the Championship.

But if the Tigers faithful had any hopes that the creative midfielder would be able to produce goals and assists on a regular basis at second tier level, then they will have been disappointed during the 2010/11 season, in which he scored just one goal and created two assists.

During the subsequent 2011/12 season, he failed to score in the Championship, albeit he did score an FA Cup goal, and produced a then career best return of five assists in the league.

The 2012/13 campaign summed up the Scotland international's tough time with the Tigers, as he made just 10 second tier appearances in which he failed to score or assist.

Ahead of the following season, he joined Blackburn on loan, and impressed during the first half of the 2013/14 term, which prompted the Lancashire outfit to snap his services up on a permanent basis come January 2014.

He had a relatively successful first season at Ewood Park too, as he scored five goals in 37 appearances, despite the fact that the club missed out on a play-off place by an agonising margin of two points.

Cairney then went on to notch three goals and five assists in 39 second tier outings for Rovers, as well as a further two assists in five FA Cup appearances during the 2014/15 campaign, before making his big move to Craven Cottage, where he subsequently produced better numbers than he ever had for either Hull or Blackburn.

Tom Cairney developed into a modern day Fulham legend after Hull & Blackburn stints

Since joining the Cottagers back in 2015, Cairney has been through a lot with the club, including three promotions and two relegations, but the Scotland international has always been a figure who the west London side can rely on, and has produced several moments of brilliance over the years.

His haul of 23 goal contributions during the 2016/17 Championship season epitomises the clinical ability he possesses in the final third, but neither Hull nor Blackburn ever saw that kind of creative edge from the attacking midfielder, and must be jealous of his subsequent Fulham exploits.