Alan Irvine felt that neither side had done enough to earn the three points after a stalemate between third and second at Deepdale. The North End boss felt that his side had had their moments, but didn't do enough to take the win.

"I don't think either team did enough to win and I don't think either team did enough to lose, so I think a draw is about right," said the gaffer. "I don't think anyone can say either team fully deserved to win. We both had our moments in the game, we both had our chances and we both had spells where we were on top and I think it was a fair result.

"We had different systems, so it was strange that we cancelled each other out, but there were spells where a lot didn't really happen in the game. It was a game that was probably going to be decided by a mistake or a bit of brilliance and neither of those things happened."

The Scot had not been happy with the first half in midweek and having listened to what the best have to say, consistency is definitely the key: "I heard Sir Alex Ferguson interviewed today and he talked about how players have to be up for every game and I though 'that sounds familiar'!

"It's a fact. It is very easy to get up for the big games on Sky television, but it not quite as easy to do it 46 times a season and if you drop below it all, then the results don't go for you and the lads set to it the way I expected them to today."

The manager was pleased with his keeper and backline, even though he had to make a change to it: "Andy wasn't called upon to make too many saves, but the ones he did make were important. You are probably looking at two teams with amongst the best goalkeepers in the division. I expected him to save that one at the end. If you are here week in, week out you will see him making those sorts of saves, so I thought it was a good save, but one I would expect him to make.

"Liam Chilvers didn't train on Thursday or Friday and I just felt that I had to do our work for the game. He had a fitness test this morning, we expected him to pass the fitness test, but I want to do the preparation for the game and I like to have that done on Friday. It is an awful lot easier to sleep when you have named the team and done the work."

Alan has talked before about his dislike of international weekends, but is hoping this will will give him at least one of his injured trio back: "We are going to do the same thing again as we did last time and we will hope that we have found the magic formula, but I don't expect that we have. We try everything in these breaks and we just hope that the results are similar when we get back this time.

"Paul Parry has a real chance of getting back. We are giving the lads time off until Wednesday and we hope that Paul will join in with us on Wednesday and train between then and the next game. I would expect that he will be fir for the game at Queens Park Rangers. Callum is a bit different, he is not pushing for Wednesday, so we will see what the next week means to him."

Reflecting as the Championship faces a two-week shut-down the gaffer has been pleased with the start to the campaign and felt that West Brom's defence 4-5-1 showed how much progress his side have made.

"I think we would have taken the start at the start of the season. We have got 19 points so far, we are in a good position in the league and I think anybody who wondered whetherthere would be a hangover from missing out on the Play-Offs has got their answer, but we don't rest on that now, we have got a lot of work to do, we have got a lot of really tough games coming up and we want to make sure we are in contention at the right end of the league come the end of the season.

"I think we are progressing. People just have to look at the fact that West Brom came to Deepdale with a more defensive team than they would normally have and I think that shows that people believe we have made progress, it is a mark of the development within the group and we are delighted with that. We have built a good reputation for ourselves and that is great, but it makes life more difficult.

"There is no doubt that it is a tough run of games to come after the break, but I keep saying that every game in the Championship is tough, you just have to look at the results; bottom can beat top. I don't feel that these games are any harder or any easier."