This weekend is a busy on in Georgia with the Masters taking place at Augusta, but elsewhere in the State, in Atlanta, PNE-v-Carlisle United will be watched closely.
That’s because former PNE and Blues midfielder Simon Davey now lives and coaches in the State and he spoke to The One And Only from his home in America early this week.
Davey’s career in football started at Swansea City but, following a back injury, the midfielder was deemed surplus to requirements in South Wales.
The Welshman was picked up by Carlisle United and was made club captain just a few months later, an honour which he is proud of to this day.
“I went up for a few weeks’ trial and they offered me a professional contract so I started pre-season that year and within two or three weeks of the start of the season I was the club captain,” Davey told the matchday programme.
“It was great for me, I think I was one of the youngest captains in the league at the time and I felt it was an honour, a privilege to be given that status.”
Fast forward three years or so and Davey was putting pen to paper on a deal at Preston, on the same day as future Manchester United and Real Madrid superstar David Beckham.
The duo made their North End debuts alongside each other and Davey can recall a particular set piece against Fulham which the pair deliberated over.
“When I was at Carlisle, I was the free kick and penalty taker and when you come into a new club and you get bought, you try to exert what you have done at the previous club on the new club,” he said.
“I started taking free kicks for Preston, I was due to take the free kick on that day, stepped up to take it, David was there and he asked me if he could take the free kick.
“We had a conversation and eventually I stood aside and I think the rest is history, he bent it into the top corner and it was a taste of things to come along the way.”
You can read more from Simon, including details of his work out in the United States in Saturday’s programme, that also includes an extensive interview with striker Stuart Beavon and with his former Didcot team-mate Jack King.
We also have features with Bailey Wright, Lee Holmes and Josh Brownhill, plus a dozen pages about our opponents from up the M6. All this and all the usual features and interviews, plus a column from former player and Match of the Day pundit Mark Lawrenson, packed into 84 perfect-bound pages.
Don’t forget; The One And Only is now available to download on your iPhone and iPad via the Matchday Digital app.
The Matchday Digital App allows you to view the North End programme anytime, anywhere. You can make one-off purchases or take out a season pass so you are subscribed to the whole season. If you can’t make the game, simply download the programme on the Matchday Digital app and be part of the game.
The slick digital version comes with all the content you would have in the printed programme, but with added features including:
• Programmes available to fans any time, anywhere
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Preston North End supporters can download an individual issue at £2.99 or take out a season pass for £49.99.
Download the Matchday Digital app on your iPhone or iPad for free now by clicking on the below iTunes App Store icon. Alternatively simply go to the iTunes App store on your iPhone/iPad and search for ‘Matchday Digital’.