Barnsley ended North End's seven-game unbeaten run by grabbing all the spoils on an entertaining afternoon at Deepdale.

The men from South Yorkshire showed no signs of an FA Cup hangover by notching their second away victory inside four days.

A first-half Diego Leon free-kick was followed up by a Jonathan Macken penalty after the break whilst Stephen Foster's own-goal on 67 minutes acted only as a consolation.

The defeat now leaves Preston six points clear of the relegation trap-door with three games remaining against Plymouth, Ipswich and Bristol City.

And whilst North End enjoyed the vast majority of the possession, it was just one of those days in front of goal as they failed to make the most of their dominance.

Prior to kick-off Alan Irvine had been rocked with the news that Chris Brown was unfit to take his place in the starting XI after the tall striker had failed to recover from a thigh strain, meaning a recall for Karl Hawley in attack. Otherwise it was the same starting line-up from the draw at QPR with Neil Mellor shrugging off a hamstring complaint.

It was a scratchy opening to proceedings until Darren Carter brought a few extra decibels out of the home support with a left-footed shot from just inside the area that was well saved from Luke Steele. The midfielder played a neat one-two with Simon Whaley but the on-loan West Brom keeper was equal to the attempt, palming the ball away after diving to his left.

Barnsley's opening chance came on 17 minutes when Diego Leon cut in off the right flank, weaved past a challenge a drilled in a rocket that looked destined to trouble Andy Lonergan, that was until Sean St Ledger read the danger and threw his body in front of the ball.

The large band of travelling supporters remained vocal right from the first whistle, however they were almost silenced when Neil Mellor came within inches of heading North End into the lead halfway through the first period. The in-form predator made a near post dart to latch onto Billy Jones' centre but he couldn't find the faintest of touches required to guide the ball past Luke Steele.

That attack started a period of dominance for Preston as they kept possession for healthy spell in-and-around the Barnsley box. Youl Mawene scuffed wide a decent opportunity 10-yards from goal whilst Darren Carter's quickly taken free-kick came to nothing.

The busy Diego Leon comfortably found the Town End with an audacious attempt from 35-yards but that only served as range finder as the Spaniard put the Tykes 1-0 up with a fantastic free-kick on 33 minutes.

After Youl Mawene had been adjudged to have tripped Jonathan Macken, the long-haired midfielder executed the perfect set-piece from the edge of the area beating Andy Lonergan at his near post with a fine curling effort.

North End responded in the right manner and were unlucky not to be level when Simon Whaley towered to head an in-swinging Chris Sedgwick cross onto the roof of the net.

But for all the pressure PNE could not find that equalising goal going into half-time.

After the interval it was more of the same from the Lilywhites as they strived to correct the score.

Neil Mellor's miss-hit lob landed just over with Billy Jones also coming close, firing in a missile after he had advanced forward from his normal defensive duties down the right.

But just as Preston looked like they were only one move away from getting themselves back in the game they were hit by the sucker punch. Jamal Campbell-Ryce broke away, played the ball inside to Odejayi and as the big Nigerian looked to give the return back to the nippy number 20, Billy Jones was deemed to have tripped him

Referee Mr Taylor had no hesitations in pointing to the penalty spot as much as the Preston players questioned his decision.

Up stepped Jonathan Macken, who coolly slotted home from 12-yards, sending Andy Lonergan the wrong way.

Alan Irvine responded by making a double change, withdrawing Darren Carter and Simon Whaley and introducing Richard Chaplow and Lewis Neal.

Preston rallied and came close to halving the deficit when Neil Mellor linked-up well with Karl Hawley but just as it looked like the former Liverpool striker was in on goal, the linesman belatedly raised his flag.

Diego Leon, Barnsley's best player, volleyed into the Shankly Kop before Preston were handed a lifeline when Foster headed into his own goal.

Richard Chaplow's delicate chipped pass caused confusion in the Barnsley defence and instead of clearing the ball to safety, the opposition's skipper diverted past the helpless Luke Steele.

Odejayi came to life with 20 minutes remaining when he powered forward and forced Andy Lonergan to make a superb save as he dived to his left and tipped the ball round the post.

The game became more and more open as North End pressed for the equaliser and Barnsley started to feel the effects of three matches inside six days.

But despite the late onslaught Preston couldn't create any real clear cut chances aside from when Richard Chaplow volleyed over from the edge of the box with three minutes remaining.

The vast majority of 13,994 in attendance roared when the fourth official indicated there was to be five minutes of stoppage time, but despite the additional period in which Andy Lonergan had a header saved by Steele, Barnsley held on for a vital three points in their quest for Championship survival.