A first half tap-in by Paul Hayes gave Preston North End a 1-0 victory in a game that was completely dominated by the Lilywhites at Deepdale.

Paul Hayes finished off an impressive move in the 16th minute to get North End off of the mark in the Championship with Preston producing a committed and attacking performance that surely delighted manager Darren Ferguson.

With the hype surrounding David Nugent's return to Deepdale, North End were handed a huge boost with the return of Nugent's former PNE team mate Sean St. Ledger to the starting 11 for the first time this season. There was a full debut for on loan striker Joshua King who came in up front with Paul Coutts also entering the fray partnering Matty James in midfield.

North End began the game displaying plenty of hunger, forcing the visiting Portsmouth into their shells in the early stages. After continued pressure in the opening couple of minutes, Preston midfielder Danny Mayor saw his driven shot from inside the penalty area just fly over.

The Lilywhites then created another opening in the fifth minute but after Treacy's initial searching cross, King was just unable to steer the ball on target. The Manchester United youngster came close to scoring again just five minutes later after being played through by strike partner Hayes, but King's effort rolled wide of the post.

King's energy and eagerness up front typified the opening 15 minutes for Preston who had a real stranglehold on the game. However, not to be outdone, Hayes made North End's dominance count in the 16th minute after finishing off a fantastic North End move.

After running at the defence, Mayor played a beautifully timed defence-splitting pass to the overlapping full back Billy Jones. Jones' low ball across the face of the penalty area was then met inside the six-yard-box by Hayes who had the easiest of tap-ins. Hayes' third goal of the campaign was just rewards for his side's dominant and spirited start to the game.

Portsmouth rarely threatened Preston in the opening 30 minutes with Ferguson's men remaining resolute at the back and in central midfield. Another telling factor in the first half was the understanding between front pairing King and Hayes who were leading the line superbly for North End.

In the 41st minute, King somehow carved out another half chance for himself after being taken down by Nadir Ciftci and Aaron Mokoena in quick succession. King managed to gather himself and shrug off the tackles before closing in on Ashdown's goal. Unfortunately, the ball just got away from the Manchester United youngster who was just unable to get the shot away.

Matty James had a shot miss the target in the dying seconds of the half but Preston went into the break with the deserved lead after a rampant first half.

The second half started with Portsmouth carving out the first few chances. Andy Lonergan was able to deal with these efforts comfortably with the most challenging shot coming from Tommy Smith.

Preston reacted to Pompey's bright start with Keith Treacy almost catching Ashdown out with his curling free kick. The winger, who has earned another call-up to the Republic of Ireland squad in September, forced the visiting goalkeeper to palm the ball wide of his post and out for a corner.

Chances then followed this with Hayes and King both breaking through on goal in quick succession. Hayes' strike went just wide with King forcing a smart block from Ashdown following his explosive run.

These chances prompted more attacks from Preston with James and King causing plenty of problems for Steve Cotterill's side. Cotterill made a couple of substitutions in the second half with Matthew Ritchie and Joel Ward introduced to try and influence proceedings. However, it was the Lilywhites who were just searching for that second goal to give themselves a little more breathing space.

In the 76th minute, King had a chance to wrap up the game after being played through by Hayes once again. Despite breaking free, Ashdown again pulled off a superb save to deny King the goal that his performance richly merited.

With just ten minutes remaining, King again was played through and managed to round Ashdown, only to be denied by the covering defender Ibrahima Sonko. It was proving to be one of those days for King who came agonisingly close time and time again to notching his first goal in the Championship.

Despite the continued pressure and onslaught on Ashdown's goal, North End won by a single goal in a game that was completely dominated by Ferguson's men.

It is to Bradford now for the Lilywhites who take on the League Two outfit in the second round of the Carling Cup on Tuesday night.