A first half header from Rory Fallon was enough to give the home sides all three points, but it could have been so different at the death when both centre halves had fantastic opportunities to give the yellows the point their efforts deserved.

Both sides were unchanged from their weekend encounters, where North End had dispatched promotion hopefuls Reading and the home side had come unstuck against Derby County despite former PNE loan player Paul Gallagher's fantastic 30 yard strike to open the scoring at Pride Park.

North End's walking wounded all came through the intervening 72 hours between the Deepdale comeback against the Royals and the 600 mile round trip to Home Park and were looking to record back to back wins and maintain their upward momentum since the international break.

The game got underway under the lights on the south west coast on what appeared a very lush surface. North End in their all yellow away strip, backed by a hardy 200 or so travelling fans, got the game underway playing towards the gathered throngs of the 'green army'.

The game was entertaining from the outset, with both sides intent on passing the ball quickly and attacking via the flanks, but also using their respective target men of Parkin and Fallon to play off.

After trading corners in the opening five minutes, both sides had good chances to open the scoring. Firstly Ross Wallace saw a left footed drive from 12 yards blocked after a positive run and pull back by Billy Jones. Up the other end and North End looked like they could have conceded their fourth penalty in consecutive games when Mackie went down under a challenge from McEveley in the right hand corner of PNE's box, but referee Andy Penn, who was well placed, saw nothing wrong with the tackle.

15 minutes on the clock and Wallace had his second effort of the game, this time picking up the ball on his chest 30 yards out and taking it on to the edge of the 'd', before hitting an effort with his unfavoured right foot, which was straight at Argyle keeper Romain Larrieu.

It seemed to be a game where all the action was coming down the same side, with Wallace the main protagonist for North End on the left and Mackie the same on Plymouth's right. He again caused McEveley problems on 16 minutes resulting in two blocked efforts for the home side, but Lonergan wasn't called into action.

The game had been very even in the opening minutes, but the home side broke the deadlock on 18 minutes. Mawene conceded a corner and Chris Clark's resulting left-footed in swinger went right across to the back post where Rory Fallon rose highest and put a looping header back over Lonergan and Barry Nicholson, who was stationed on the line, could do nothing to prevent the ball landing in the back of the net.

The line man at the other end was the home side's saviour on 25 minutes. A corner from Ross Wallace was met by a high-rising Jon Parkin. His goalbound effort had Larrieu beaten, but Luke Summerfield was on the line and headed clear.

The home side were forced into an early change a minute later with Kouo-Doumbe limping off to be replaced by Jim Paterson in the Pilgrims' backline.

A switch of the flanks for the North End wingers sparked more attacks from the yellows, with Sedgwick and Wallace able to cut inside to give Paul Sturrock's side a few probing problems, without creating too many clear cut openings.

Two minutes of stoppage time was played at the end of the first half and within it North End had their best chance of the game. Elliott was found by Wallace in the box after a ricochet. He had the ball at his feet eight yards out, unmarked, but the ball seemed to stick as he tried to hit it goalwards and he scuffed the chance which was cleared by a grateful Argyle defence in the last meaningful action of the first period.

North End started the second half where they had ended the first, as the side looking most likely to score the game's second goal, with Ross Wallace again at the heart of the best attacking moves, now from the right hand side.

Before the hour mark the manager chose to make a change and brought Neil Mellor into the action, replacing Jon Parkin and five minutes later he was joined by Simon Whaley, who came on for Chris Sedgwick.

Mawene was booked with 19 minutes left for pulling back Gallagher on the right hand side, when the Blackburn loanee had jinked his way past the Frenchman. The resulting free kick found its way to the Scottish striker on the penalty spot, but his vicious shot was blocked on the line.

Rory Fallon was cautioned for manhandling Billy Jones with eight minutes to go, but although the ball again found its way into the Argyle box the Lilywhites were unable to test Larrieu, something they needed to do if they were to get anything out of a game that had become bogged down in midfield.

Despite having the majority of the possession, North End were lacking in creativity in the final third and even the impetus of the introduction of Mellor, Whaley and finally Jason Jarrett for McKenna, six minutes from the end, didn't give the visitors the clear cut opportunity they craved.

Good play by Whaley and Jones crafted a corner as the game entered the final five minutes. Wallace's viciously delivered left foot cross was powerfully met by Billy Jones, but the England under 21s defender's header flashed past the left hand upright.

Four minutes of stoppage time were signalled by the fourth official, much to the chagrin of the home support and North End threw Youl Mawene into the front line to try and add an extra body to the efforts.

And it was he and his fellow centre half Sean St. Ledger who should have grabbed an equaliser at the death. Firstly Mawene volleyed from eight yards out - Larrieu acrobatically saving - and then from the resulting corner the ball fell to St. Ledger unmarked six yards out, but his shot blazed over the cross bar leaving him and his team-mates with nothing to show for the 600 mile round trip.

Plymouth Argyle: Lariey, Duguid, Clark, Gallagher, Kouo-Doumbe (Paterson, 27), Fallon, Barker, Seip, Summerfield, Cathcart, Mackie. Subs Not Used: Timar, MacLean, Noone, Marin.

Preston North End: Lonergan, Mawene, Sedgwick (Whaley, 67), Nicholson, St. Ledger, McKenna (Jarrett, 84), Jones, McEveley, Wallace, Parkin (Mellor, 59), Elliott. Subs Not Used: Nolan, C Neal.

Referee: Andy Penn (West Midlands)

Attendance: 9,824 (Away Fans: 199)