A superb striker from Darren Carter was the pick of the goals as Preston North End ran out three nil victors at Victory Park in front of a sizeable summer crowd.
It took North End until the second half to commence the scoring thanks to an instinctive fourth goal of the pre-season for Chris Brown but the goals flowed soon after including a collectors item from the North End number eleven.
Carter's hit from twenty yards drew applause from all four sides of Victory Park and it was fully deserved with the curling free-kick leaving the Chorley keeper standing as it flew into the top corner.
Karl Hawley followed up minutes later by notching his second goal of the pre-season, latching onto an excellent knockdown from Chris Brown to complete the three nil victory for the red-shirted away side.
While another PNE eleven were playing Bamber Bridge, North End lined up with youth team goalkeeper Ben Proctor behind an experienced back four of Billy Jones, Liam Chilvers, Dominic Collins and Callum Davidson. In midfield Barry Nicholson partnered Darren Carter in the centre of the park with Chris Sedgwick and Adam Barton providing the ammunition from the wings for Chris Brown and Karl Hawley up front.
The opening exchanges were peppered with strong challenges and enterprising play was at a minimum from both sides until the ninth minute when Chorley's central midfielder Karl Maden struck the North End crossbar with a well-taken free-kick. Davidson was penalised for bundling over Chorley's new signing and the red-haired number eight curled a left footed effort which had Proctor beaten but the woodwork came to the rescue for PNE.
The right wing was where PNE were managing to pressurise the Victory Park and it was right winger Sedgwick who struck with North End's first shot on target in the sixteenth minute. Excellent link up play between Hawley and Davidson on the left flank allowed the Scotsman to swing in a beautiful ball which Carter won at the back post. Sedgwick was first to pounce but unfortunately Tom Spearitt charged down his goalbound strike.
North End gradually settled further into the friendly and eight minutes later excellent passing from Nicholson and Hawley freed Carter to run at the Magpies' defence, the number ten released Sedgwick who picked out in-form striker Brown and the big man brought down the cross beautifully but his sidefooted effort went inches wide of Zac Hibbert's goal while the referee whistled for offside.
The red-shirted away team had to be wary of the Chorley counter-attack and with thirty minutes almost on the clock he hussled and harried Collins in the left corner and won the ball but his cross couldn't find a black and white shirt and the score remained goalless.
The growing threat of PNE was more evident on thirty four minutes when a well-measured ball from the boot of Carter released the surging Davidson, the Scotsman was about to pull the trigger from inside the left edge of the penalty area but number three was hauled down however the referee didn't blow for a penalty.
Two minutes later it was the Hallein hat-trick hero Brown who had another chance to open the scoring. A cracking ball from central midfielder turned left winger Barton found the big man but once again the former Norwich striker was denied by an excellent challenge.
It was the professionals who were closest again in the fortieth minute when both Davidson and Carter had potshots on Hibbert's goal. Neat passing on the right flank from Sedgwick and Hawley allowed the striker to arrow a ball in. His cross was headed away and met by the midfielder who's goalbound half-volley was deflected away by the defence to North End's left-back who walloped his shot over the Chorley crossbar.
The Scotland International was seeing more and more of the ball as the half progressed and his run and pass forward in the forty second minute was picked up by Brown however the bounce on the pitch deceived the striker and it rolled away for a goal-kick.
The penultimate minute of the first half saw the first corner of the game and it came from the dominant away team. Nicholson rolled the ball to Carter from the left corner and the former WBA and Birmingham midfielder's cross was picked up by Barton at the back post. Neat footwork and a deceiving turn gave him the space to loop a cross over the six yard box to Sedgwick in the centre but the number seven couldn't get enough power on his headed effort and Chorley made it to half-time with one hand on the Jack Kirkland trophy.
As the rain fell down at the start of the second half it was first year pro Adam Barton who created North End's first chance of note. A well-weighted pass from Davidson was picked up by the Blackburn-born teenager who pushed forward but his cross was too deep for the redshirted North End players in the penalty area.
On the fify fourth minute the pressure was finally too much for the Magpies' backline and Chris Brown tapped home to give North End the lead. A mistake from Clark in the Chorley defence was latched onto by Brown who laid it into the path of Hawley. The number eight took his time, found Barton at the back post with a well-aimed crossfield pass which the midfielder took down beautifully past his marker and his side-footed cross was easily converted by the onrushing striker.
Five minutes on and after an ear-piercing tannoy announcement Barton almost ended a well-crafted move with a goal himself. He played a long one-two with Davidson from the centre of the park but after taking a touch could only shoot wide of the substitute keeper Johnson's net.
Barton was clearly enjoying himself with his runs into the central midfield and from a Sedgwick throughball in the sixty first minute he struck again for goal but a Chorley boot got in the way and was deflected away for a corner which was cleared by the Chorley backline.
Billy Jones was close to doubling the PNE lead on sixty five minutes, the right-back received a Davidson pass via a Sedgwick dummy on the right side of the penalty area and instead of taking a touch unleashd a fierce striker which shot a couple of feet over.
It was another case of 'where was the whistle?' two minutes later when Carter was manhandled in the Chorley penalty area following a Davidson cross but as in the first half the referee waved away the penalty claims from the North End players and fans.
PNE were pushing the ball well from flank to flank as the half went on and excellent passing from Brown and Carter saw the latter's ball just miss the onrushing Nicholson on seventy minutes. Fortunately, Hawley was hand at the back post to pick up the ball but instead of finding the unmarked goalscorer Brown in the six yard box, the number eight chose to shoot from a narrow angle and the keeper saved.
The second goal wasn't long in coming soon after when a cracking freekick from Carter doubled PNE's lead. A dangerous run from Jones was stopped illegally about twenty yards from the Chorley goal and with other players fancying a crack the former WBA man unleashed a beautiful strike which hit the top right corner and left the keeper standing dead.
Both the goalscorers were eager to add to their tallies with both Brown and Carter hitting dangerous shots from outside the penalty area in the seventy eighth and eightieth minutes but to no success for PNE.
But it was Brown's striker partner Karl Hawley who made the Jack Kirkland trophy safe for PNE in the eighty first minute after good work from Brown and Davidson. The Scotsman's sweeping left footed ball was cleverly knocked down by the opening goalscorer and the unmarked midlander Hawley banged home from ten yards past Johnson.
North End were still hungry for more goals and it took a wonderful stop from Johnson with six minutes remaining to deny Brown a second, the keeper getting down well to stop the Durham-born forward's right foot volley, midfielder Nicholson followed up but the keeper did well to prevent him as well.
PNE: Proctor, Jones, Chilvers, Collins, Davidson (c), Sedgwick, Carter, Nicholson, Barton, Hawley, Brown. Subs: McLaughlin, Owens, Douglas.
Chorley: Xach HIbbert, Luke Charnley, Karl Brown, Martin Clark, Wayne Maden, Tom Spearitt, Mike Fletcher, Adam Prince, Danny Nolan,Simon Pemberton. Subs: Johnson (For Hibbert, 46), Dodwell (For Pemberton, 77)
Referee: Mr A Bond
