After seeing his side mathematically safe with a stunning injury time win over Scunthorpe at Deepdale, manager Darren Ferguson looked to the future. The North End boss admitted he had learnt a lot about management and his players during his three months in charge and was ready to make the necessary changes in order to make next season a success.
"These three months have been the biggest learning curve in my three years in management and that is important," said the gaffer.
"The key was to keep us up, but I have been very disappointed by the results we've had. But we've won 3-2 today, we are mathematically safe and I can't wait for next season.
"I definitely won't celebrate staying up. At a club like Preston our expectations and mine are the Play-Offs and that's what they should be because the history of the Club suggests that. But sometimes there needs to be change, there needs to be a freshness.
"It is not about just managing the first team, I manage the whole club from the bottom to the top and it is important that we get players through from the youth ranks into the first team; it is a big criteria for me. You have to do it at the right time and people might say I was a little bit brave doing it in a game of this magnitude today, but the players can handle it. The money I might have to generate to spend to bring new players in might have to come from selling players, but I am fine with that."
The game itself looked again to be one where North End had put themselves in a good position and thrown it all away until the late, late show: "It was probably a wee bit roles reversed in terms of us coming back to get a win, but again we've lost the lead, but in a game that tense at this stage of the season you need a bit of magic and Keith Treacy had produced that and he is capable of doing it, because he's a very good player.
"It was a great goal to win a game, but boy is a good player with stacks of ability and he is now showing us what he can do. I know he's a player and he is going to have a big part to play next season with a good pre-season under his belt.
"For the equaliser, Callum has put a ball in and Browny has got there and I thought Mells was going to put it in, but Billy's nodded it in. He gets important goals does Billy, but it was a bit of magic that won us the game.
"I didn't feel that we were out of it at 2-1. I was quite composed and I always thought we'd get a chance.
"I thought Callum Davidson at 2-1 showed his real captain qualities; I thought he was outstanding and drove us forward to get us back into the game.
"It would be unfair to criticise individual mistakes, because as a team we win together and we lose together and the outcome is the most important thing. I have just said to the lads it was magnificent to come back the way they did and I'm proud of them for that. The lads have dug in today and were immense in terms of their attitude and we've got over the line and now we can concentrate on next season."
The gaffer chose to change formation and blood two youngsters in the game, with Adam Barton impressing before a head injury meant he was taken to hospital at half-time.
"As manager I take responsibility for the way things have gone, but people who criticise my tactics its absolute nonsense; I can't legislate for what that first goal was about or when Sheffield Wednesday scored from 30 yards. Goals change games - that has nothing to do with tactics. We went a different was today, we went 4-3-3 and I thought in the first half Adam Barton was absolutely magnificent and we missed him second half.
"I thought Adam was one of the best players on the pitch, but he was concussed and actually, a young lad playing his debut, coming off injured cost us! They changed their shape to nullify us and they obviously thought Adam would stay on and had put Hayes to play against him and we had to change and go 4-4-2 and then we had to change it again with Matty James going against Hayes and just when I thought we were okay we went and lost a goal and the second one was a sloppy one as well.
"Danny gives you that pace that keeps you in games; he can take the ball to the byline and get throw ins and corners. Him and Adam both have really good temperaments and they both have bright futures.
"I can actually sit down with the chairman and the owners now and discuss what we are going to do and we got a little bit of a taster today with Danny Mayor and Adam Barton playing."
The manager had suggested in his post match interview that Barton's head injury could be quite serious, but the Club doctor later confirmed Barton had not fractured his skull and had just suffered concussion in the first half challenge.
Barton had been included even before Richard Chaplow had got injured in training on Friday, but the manager explained the Youl Mawene's absence was down to personal reasons: "There's been a family bereavement and all our thoughts are with Youl.
"I spoke to him yesterday and it came as a bit of surprise, but no matter what happens in football there are always more important things and I feel for Youl. I've told him he can go and take as much time as he wants in France because he has to be with his family."
With the season still having three weeks to go the manager now wants to end on a positive note, before a potential busy summer: "We have three games left, we want to win as many as we can and finish as high as we can and it wouldn't surprise me if we went and won our last three and finished in the top half.
"It has been a hard few weeks for everyone, but we have kept together and got over the line.
"I know my targets now and I know what I want to do. The meeting I have needed to have with the chairman has been prolonged, but thankfully we are over the line now and we can look to that.
"Our mentality in our last three games has to be a winning one, but I saw a lot of good things today that I can take into next season."
