A transcript of the interview is below.

Maurice, welcome to Preston North End, the position of chairman of Preston North End obviously many people have held over the years and it must be a privilege and an honour to be taking the role?

"It is a deep privilege and I am very honoured to even be considered as chairman of one of the most famous clubs in the world.

"When I grew up living in a place called Horwich, my first team I ever saw play was Bolton for a number of years and I had such an admiration for Preston North End when they used to bring Tom Finney, now Sir Tom Finney.

"I used to see this genius on the pitch that could do things that nobody else could do.

"All of my life, like a lot of people in the country, I have had a fascination and a deep respect for Preston, so I do understand the importance of becoming chairman of Preston, that's for sure."

You have taken over the role from Derek Shaw, Derek is parting the company on good terms and you are parting your previous employers in Wigan Athletic on very good terms?

"First of all I would like to pay tribute to Derek. Derek is a totally committed fan to Preston North End as I'm sure he will be for all of his days. I'm sure that it will be a difficult period, not just a difficult period for Preston but a difficult period for all of football.

"We all know about the financial pressures, not only at Portsmouth but at Crystal Palace. It is endless really, and Preston is no different. Derek did a great job in trying to work everything together.

"There has been a change because of the shares that have been purchased now by one of Mr Hemmings' companies, and I also need to pay tribute to Mr Hemmings who has done a sterling job to finance at a difficult time for Preston.

"I'm coming with a new approach, some experience because I was at Wigan for a number of years; I have been at Dave Whelan's side for a few years, I have been around the block a few times.

"I am really excited about the challenge and lets make no bones about it, it is difficult times but let's hope to get through the difficult times and lead on to better days."

Can you tell us how this came about, obviously you have had a relationship with Mr Hemmings for a long time, so how did this come about?

"I have known Mr Hemmings for many many years. We both came from a construction background and I knew Mr Hemmings when he was in the construction industry and I also had a company in the construction industry. I've known him off and on and we both have a passion for horses, he owns a few more than I do and he has been more successful than I have, as he has in life. But we talk regularly about all kinds of things.

"When we were talking about Preston and his ambitions, we just stirred into a conversation almost about how he was trying to restructure things. It came about almost by a mutual thought that it might suit Mr Hemmings and his company if he brought me in. It might suit me because Wigan is well structured, well run, Dave is the leader and although I have done a lot of time there and have loved it, the club is able to let me go without suffering.

"So it is a good time and I hope to repay Mr Hemmings in the faith he has given me, but on behalf of the Preston supporters repay Mr Hemmings for the support he has given the Club."

From a supporter's perspective, they may ask what you have been brought in for. You have been brought in as an executive chairman and the day to day running of the business is something that you will take a strong hand in. What will be your remit?

"I have been a sports administrator in business all of my life. For anyone who perhaps doesn't know, I used to be the chief executive of the Rugby Football League, responsible for negotiating all of the Sky deals, responsible for running international games as the international board chairman, being manager of Great Britain, the team itself and taking them around the world playing tough teams like Australia in test matches. So I have had a long sporting administrative background which I bring experience with me.

"From a football side, I have been at Wigan Athletic for a number of years now; I did represent Wigan Athletic on the Premier Chair holders group and the Premier League media group. I was elected by the Premier League to assert them with the FA Council where I sat in on a few meetings. So I have been involved in senior football administration for a number of years.

"Coming to Preston will be a combination of my sports administration background having dealt with players, dressing rooms and sports administrations together with my business background that helps me to understand that basically you have got to spend what you earn.

"It will be a combination of trying to stabilise the Club financially which will mean certain decisions and at the same time working feverishly to support the manager, Darren, to get the best out of his players and to produce as competitive a team as we can in these difficult times."

That will be the next big question that the fans ask, what sort of support can the manager expect from you as chairman and what role will you take in the day to day business with Darren?

"First of all the manager is the most important person at any football Club. It is his energy, his commitment, his grief and ambition that the players respond to. In that respect, the administration and his chairman acts in a supporting role.

"I will never pretend to be a team manager or never pretend to be a selector, never pretend to be a talent scout, I'm just here available 24 hours a day to support the manager wherever I can.

"Purely I will be managing the business of the Club, so I will have to work with Darren so that we operate within reasonable restraints so we don't fall into the difficult financial circumstances that the Club has been in. I will be faithfully supporting the manager wherever possible."

It has been a summer of turmoil for Preston supporters with things going on with the HMRC and I suppose that now is the time for reassurance for supporters. That is something as well that is making progress?

"Indeed and we are all indebted to Mr Hemmings for that. It has been a dreadful time for Preston North End. Being a Lancashire boy myself and living not so far from the ground, I have taken an interest in the fortunes of Preston North End in particularly these last few months, even though I would never have dreamt finishing up here, I felt a great deal of sympathy for them and their supporters.

"It is a tremendously famous Club and we all know about the 19th century exploits, so those days need to be restored but they wont happen overnight. We all owe it to the fans, whether we are chairman, managers or administration staff, we are just stewards of the Club.

"The most important element of any Club are the fans, without them there is no point in being alive. We are working to try to deliver to those fans the dreams that we all have in the stands at the game to be as successful as we possibly can. The recent difficult times, I think that they are going to be behind us.

"There are some developments currently being debated and negotiated now which will come to fruition in the next few days which will see the pressure of those winding up orders and financial demands lifted, with the Club given a fresh start and then it is up to us all to work hard to make sure that we stay on the straight and narrow."

A lot of those fans and season ticket holders have perhaps been a bit careful over the summer about whether to spend their money or not. One thing now is that you will want the whole community, whether it is the business community, the supporters, the staff, the players, it is important that everybody gets behind the team now and unite? It is now a time to build and look to the future?

"I understand supporters and season ticket holders that have had second thoughts because it has been such a bleak picture that they might be wondering what they are supporting. They want to support to the Club, they want to commit to season tickets but they feel that this doubt at the Club doesn't have a predictable future.

"I would say to them that it has, we are not going to be Manchester City by summing up billions of pounds to spend on transfers, we're not even starting in that area. We are going to stabilise our finances then make progress. So I would like every supporter, every season ticket holder to come with us and I always explain, on a daily basis if necessary, exactly where we are and where we are going.

"I will tell them about the problems as well as the successes, so I am very ambitious, I always have been all of my life and reasonably successful in sport. I want that to happen at Preston North End, can't do it alone, we have to take the team with us which is all of the staff at Preston North End, the manager and his players.

"I want us all to have the same work ethic, all to have the same belief and all to have the same ambition. That won't work without the supporters. I won't make false promises; I won't say to them that they will be delirious from day one because promises mean nothing unless you can deliver.

"All I can promise and will promise faithfully is that I will work as hard as I've ever worked in my previous life in sport to bring back success to Preston. It won't happen overnight, there is a lot of hard work to do starting today, but I want them to come, give it all a chance and see what progress we can make.

"Let us all support the players, let's get a competitive team, lets be fighters off the field to get the financially stability and fighters on the field."

And the carrot at the end of that is pretty big. Premier League football has been experienced all around Lancashire and ultimately it is the aim here at Preston North End?

"Indeed, I have come from a club, Wigan Athletic who were in a much lower division and operated with very small crowds. But because of the determination of David Whelan, people around him and some enthusiastic managers like Paul Jewell, the terrific Steve Bruce, etc, the energy, the work ethic and the determination spread through the club, spread through the side and everybody wants to improve.

"Everybody wants to get the Holy Grail. Now we won't be one of those clubs who try to get to the Premier League and go bankrupt, we won't be doing that, that is ridiculous. We have got to keep Preston North End alive forever, for the next generation and the generation behind that.

"We start today with a clean slate, we start today with the determination to stay in the Championship and get ourselves steadily towards that top promotion or Play-Off place.

"We have got some very good teams to play this year, big sides, big crowds. Norwich have just come up who will bring an average of 25,000 people to their ground, Sheffield is a football city so there are a lot of clubs that we have got to compete with.

"It won't be easy, but as long as Darren and the players know that, and I know they do, we start off knowing what the rewards are, knowing what the struggles are then we will know what we can take from it."

Photographs courtesy of the Lancashire Evening Post