Hull City are third in the Premier League after completing back-to-back victories at north London's footballing powerhouses. When the Yorkshire club won promotion via the play-offs in May, the very notion would have seemed beyond the outlandish. But last night, as their supporters departed White Hart Lane with euphoria in their veins, it was gloriously real.

Geovanni was the toast of those in amber and black. Having scored what Arsène Wenger described as the "goal of a lifetime", in the 2-1 win at Arsenal the previous weekend, the Brazilian picked out the top corner again from long range. This time, it was from a 25-yard free-kick that was the definition of perfection. "He is a sunshine boy," said the Hull manager, Phil Brown. "It is dreamland for us."

Geovanni was far from being the only hero, as Tottenham continued their nightmarish start to the season. Not since 1912 have they failed to win any of their opening seven league fixtures. Juande Ramos, the manager, was a snapshot in frustration, his exclamations and whirling arms in stark contrast to the body language of Brown. "You're getting sacked in the morning," chorused the visiting hordes.

The Hull striker Marlon King was given a huge ovation when he was withdrawn late on, having put in what the professionals call a "shift" and the layman would term 81 minutes of relentless effort. King's aerial power consistently unsettled Jonathan Woodgate and Vedran Corluka at the heart of Spurs' defence while his hold-up play gave Hull the outlet that they needed as they defended on the back foot.

It was here that the central defenders Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte emerged with credit. As they had been at the Emirates, they were towers of strength and they repeatedly repelled the high balls that Tottenham slung across, for the most part in hope and latterly in desperation. Woodgate finished the game as an auxiliary centre-forward.

"You could take the statistics and say from an objective point of view that Tottenham possibly deserved something," said Brown. "But from a subjective point of view, the best chances came for Hull and I like good defending. We defended manfully again and I am delighted with our first clean sheet. I love 1-0 wins. It's a fantastic result for a defensive coach." Brown offered his sympathy to Ramos. "I have no doubt that once they get that win, the shackles that are preventing them from playing to the best of their abilities will come off," he said. "I still see them as a top-six team."

The reaction of the home crowd spoke volumes. They are rarely slow to vent their spleen yet the booing at full-time was half-hearted. Perhaps it was tempered by resignation or maybe they had recognised the commitment in the performance in front of them. Jermaine Jenas, the stand-in captain, epitomised it, demanding the ball and trying to drive his team.

Ramos argued that the display had everything but a goal - which overlooked the defensive wobbles - but he ought to have known better. Goals are a rather fundamental requirement. Tottenham might have enjoyed the territorial advantage but they wanted sorely for cutting edge in the final third. Ramos described his striking options as the weakest aspect of his squad and it certainly looked that way here. Bring back Jermain Defoe. Or Robbie Keane. Or Dimitar Berbatov.

Roman Pavlyuchenko, whose performance had been peripheral, limped off after 35 minutes with an ankle injury, on which he will have a scan today. His replacement, Darren Bent, guided a fine opportunity wide of the far post in the 57th minute, having been played in by Luka Modric and shortly afterwards he saw a shot blocked bravely by Turner. Fraizer Campbell, the former Hull favourite, had nothing clear-cut and he was crowded out on the couple of occasions that he wriggled through.

Tottenham have scored only four times in their seven Premier League matches and the situation has become grave for Ramos. He needs goals and points from games quickly. Tottenham's fixtures after the international break are Stoke City (away) and Bolton Wanderers (home). To compound Tottenham's frustrations, Ramos' predecessor, Martin Jol, has led Hamburg to the top of the Bundesliga.

Tottenham had gone close through Gareth Bale in the first minute, Andy Dawson hacking his shot to safety, and Pavlyuchenko, but at the other end, Geovanni ought to have given Hull the lead, when he ghosted inside Woodgate's non-existent tackle and found himself one-on-one with Heurelho Gomes only to lift over the bar. When opportunity knocked from considerably further out, his aim was unerring.

Bale rattled the crossbar with a swerving 25-yard free-kick; Dean Marney, the former Tottenham midfielder, hit an upright and so did Woodgate in a pulsating first half. The pace was less frenetic after the interval. King might have made the game safe when he was set clean through in the 75th minute but the narrowness of the scoreline only made the full-time whistle sound sweeter to Brown. Ramos forced a smile, shook his hand and disappeared down the tunnel. For the Spaniard, the misery appears relentless.

Man of the match: Michael Turner (Hull)

Together with his central defensive partner Kamil Zayatte, he stood tall in the face of everything that Tottenham could throw at Hull

Best moment Any one of a series of brave headers and other assorted interventions. Perhaps the most eye-catching was his throwing of his body in the way of Darren Bent's shot in the 69th minute

1912 and all that When Spurs were as bad as in 2008

The RMS Titanic, below, hits an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York and sinks in the Atlantic killing 1,513 passengers

Captain Robert Scott reaches the south pole but none of his party survives the return journey

Joseph Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili, below, changes his name to Stalin - meaning Man of Steel - after being invited by Lenin to join the Bolshevik leadership

The Royal Flying Corps, later the Royal Air Force, is formed with an initial strength of 36 planes and 12 manned balloons

The American Donald Lippincott sets the first official world record for the 100m, clocking 10.6sec in Stockholm

White Hart Lane hosts the Charity Shield, won 2-1 by Blackburn over QPR. Proceeds from the match go to the Titanic Relief Fund

Tottenham Hotspur go on to finish 17th in the First Division and stay up...but Woolwich Arsenal are relegated