Match Preview: Blackpool (H)

4 April 2022

Deepdale will celebrate what would have been Sir Tom Finney’s 100th birthday on Tuesday night as Preston North End host Lancashire rivals Blackpool.

Match Information
Venue: Deepdale
Date: Tuesday 5th April, 7.45pm kick-off
Competition: EFL Sky Bet Championship (Matchday 40/46)
Kit: Home kit – available to order here!

Supporter Information

All tickets for this fixture are now off sale, with the ticket office only open for collections and queries on Tuesday. Supporters who have moved from their usual season card seat will need to use paper tickets for this fixture, which can be collected from the ticket office or printed at home.

The fan zone will be open to PNE supporters from 5pm as normal by the Alan Kelly Town End car park, with food, drink and live music all on offer.

Attending fans should also be aware of road closures and police cordons around the ground, which you can find more information about here.

Match Coverage

With this game having been selected for live coverage on Sky Sports, this fixture will be unavailable to watch worldwide on iFollow PNE. Supporters are advised to check their local listings to see if the game is available to watch in their area.

Fans can listen live with a £2.49 match pass or £4.49 monthly pass, with live commentary coming from Jonathan Breeze and David Buchanan. Click here to subscribe.

PNE Team News

Ryan Lowe confirmed in his pre-match press conference that he will have the same squad available to him which took on Derby County at the weekend.

Bambo Diaby is also in contention to return to action after missing Saturday’s game through illness.

Tom Barkhuizen is unlikely to be available, while Ryan Ledson and Izzy Brown will miss out through injury.

The Opposition

The Seasiders come in to this fixture on the back of a heavy defeat at home to Nottingham Forest, as Neil Critchley’s side went 4-0 behind before Callum Connolly scored a late consolation for the hosts.

Following that defeat, former Liverpool U23 boss Critchley conceded that reaching the Play-Offs would be a “big ask”, but he’s not writing them off while still mathematically possible.

He looks likely to be without right back Dujon Sterling, who picked up an injury in the Forest defeat, while Jordan Gabriel could feature for the first time since the end of February after returning to training following injury.

Key Stats

Josh Bowler has been arguably the biggest threat for his side in recent games especially, with the former Everton winger having scored five in his last ten games.

PNE boast the better record of the two sides since the first meeting back in 1901, with North End having won 45 of the 95 fixtures, compared to Blackpool’s 31 wins.

Sir Tom Finney – who would have celebrated his 100th birthday on Tuesday – played 17 times against the Seasiders, winning ten of the meetings and scoring five goals himself.

Our Last Victory

North End last beat their Lancashire rivals the last time the Seasiders came to Deepdale, with Simon Grayson’s side earning a late win in the first round of the EFL Cup.

It was skipper Tom Clarke who scored the winner in the 87th minute, heading home Lee Holmes’ free-kick to secure passage into the next round.

Man In The Middle

David Webb will referee Tuesday’s Lancashire derby, which will be his third PNE match of the season.

He was the man in charge when North End beat the previously undefeated league leaders AFC Bournemouth in November, while he had the whistle when the Lilywhites drew with Sheffield United at Deepdale in January, with Andrew Hughes being shown a first-half red card in that game.

Webb has refereed 30 games so far this season, showing 103 yellow cards and three reds.

Pre-Match Interviews

Gaffer Looking Forward
To Derby Day Whiteman: “We Need To
Win The Game”

Match Reports

Match Report: PNE 1 Blackpool 0

5 April 2022

Cameron Archer’s goal in first-half stoppage time earned Preston North End a 1-0 victory in the Lancashire derby at Deepdale.

Archer scored the one and only goal of the night, netting his sixth strike in a PNE shirt by firing into the far corner to beat Chris Maxwell and ultimately win the game for his side.

Ryan Lowe made three changes from the weekend’s defeat, with Brad Potts, Greg Cunningham and Sepp van den Berg all coming into the side.

It was almost a full house at Deepdale as North End fans celebrated the 100^th birthday of the late Sir Tom Finney, while goalkeeper Declan Rudd – who announced his retirement last week – was presented to the supporters prior to the game.

The match itself started at the pace you would expect from a derby, but there was a ten-minute stoppage not long into the fixture with goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw requiring treatment, and he needed to be replaced by Maxwell.

Once the game restarted, North End almost took the lead on 25 minutes, as Andrew Hughes headed Ben Whiteman’s corner against the crossbar.

Ten minutes later the woodwork was struck again by the home side, this time with Brad Potts seeing a cross deflected on to the top of the bar, and the ball looked to be falling kindly for Alan Browne, but he lost his footing at the vital moment and couldn’t quite get the required connection.

At the other end, Brad Potts came up with a vital block at point-blank range to stop Callum Connolly’s volley on the end of a corner causing any trouble.

The volume was cranked up inside Deepdale three minutes into the 11 added on as Archer gave his side the lead, with Emil Riis finding the Aston Villa loanee with a brilliant sliding pass, and he struck hard and low to find the far corner.

North End went into the break a goal to the good and, after little in the way of chances in the opening stages of the second period, on 69 minutes the hosts went close, as Ben Whiteman’s free-kick came back out to the No.4 and he curled an effort just wide of the post.

Whiteman was involved again late on as he struck goalwards and the Lilywhites had a big shout for a penalty with the crowd inside Deepdale appealing for a handball against the visiting defender, but the referee waved away appeals.

Keshi Anderson had a late effort for the Seasiders, with a free-kick on the edge of the box going just over the bar, and PNE saw out the game for a big three points against their Lancashire rivals.

PNE line-up: Iversen; van den Berg, Bauer, Hughes; Potts, Whiteman, Browne, Johnson, Cunningham (McCann, 73); Riis, Archer. Subs not used: Ripley, Diaby, Earl, Murphy, Maguire, Sinclair.

Blackpool line-up: Grimshaw (Maxwell, 20); Connolly, Ekpiteta, Keogh, Husband; Dougall (Virtue, 82), Robson; Bowler, Anderson, Hamilton (Lavery, 64); Madine (Yates, 77). Subs not used: James, Dale, Thorniley.

Attendance: 18,740 (2,153 away fans).

Referee: Mr D Webb.

Ticket News

No Sales On The Day For Blackpool Fixture

30 March 2022

There will be no sales on the day of the game for our upcoming Lancashire derby against Blackpool at Deepdale.

North End host the Seasiders on Tuesday 5th April and tickets for the game will go off sale at 5pm on Monday 4th April, subject to availability.

Tickets remain on sale online at www.mypne.com, by calling 0344 856 1966 or in person from the ticket office.

Please note that the Bill Shankly Kop is sold out for this fixture, while there are now only limited seats available in both the Alan Kelly Town End and the Invincibles Pavilion, with further tickets available in the Sir Tom Finney Stand.

If you haven't got your ticket already, ensure you purchase yours as soon as possible so you don't miss out!

The main ticket office on the Sir Tom Finney Stand will remain open from 9am on the day of the game for collections and queries only, with the Invincibles ticket office closed on the night of the game.

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