Match Preview: Sheffield United (A)

27 April 2023

Preston North End will head to Bramall Lane on Saturday for the penultimate game of the Championship season, taking on Sheffield United who secured their promotion to the Premier League earlier this week.

Match Information
Venue: Bramall Lane
Date: Saturday 29^th April, 3pm kick-off
Competition: EFL Sky Bet Championship (Matchday 45/46)
Kit: Away kit – available in-store and online!

Supporter Information

Tickets for this fixture will remain on sale from www.mypne.com until 1pm on Friday 28^th April, while sales will continue in person from the ticket office and over the phone on 0344 856 1966 until 5pm.

Supporters collecting pre-paid or duplicate tickets on the day can do so from the black collection kiosk, which is adjacent to the ticket office, located at the bottom of the main car park on Cherry Street. The collection kiosk will open at 1.30pm.

Coach travel is still available for this game, departing from Deepdale and Leyland at 11am, priced at £14 per Ambassador and £16 per non-Ambassador.

How To Follow The Game

Supporters worldwide can listen to the game live on iFollow PNE, with commentary coming from Guy Clarke and David Buchanan. Click here to buy a match pass for just £2.50.

Fans overseas, but not those in the UK and Ireland, can watch live with a £10 match pass and with seasonal subscriptions.

There will also be extensive coverage of the fixture across our social media channels and right here on PNE.Com.

In The Dressing Room

Robbie Brady is expected to miss out this weekend with a calf strain, which also left him out of Saturday’s game against Blackburn Rovers.

Other than that, it will be the same group of players available to Ryan Lowe, with Bambo Diaby serving the second match of his four-game suspension.

Patrick Bauer – after making his first start since December last weekend – will be looking to take his North End appearance tally to 100 at Bramall Lane.

A Look At Our Hosts

Sheffield United secured their automatic promotion to the top flight on Wednesday evening with a 2-0 victory at home to West Bromwich Albion.

The Blades, managed by Paul Heckingbottom, have spent pretty much the whole campaign in the top two spots of the division and they’ve coupled that success with reaching the FA Cup semi-finals.

With promotion already secured, changes may be made for this fixture, but there’s a huge amount of strength in the Blades’ squad, so whoever they field will pose a threat on the day.

Going Head To Head

Games played: 121
PNE wins: 36
Draws: 32
Sheffield United wins: 53
Last victory: Sheffield United 0-1 PNE, 28^th April 2018

One To Watch

It’s always difficult to pick out just one key man from a team riding so high in the league table, but Iliman Ndiaye is hard to look past.

With 13 goals and nine assists to his name, the 23-year-old has proven to be one of the best attacking talents in the Championship this season, and he unsurprisingly has a reported long list of admirers.

Ndiaye, who played three times for Senegal at the Qatar World Cup – one of those being against England – opened the scoring at Deepdale in the reverse fixture earlier this season.

Match Officials

Stephen Martin will take charge of a PNE match for the third time this season on Saturday.

Martin oversaw North End’s 2-1 victory away to Rotherham United last month, while the other was a 4-0 defeat at Deepdale against Norwich City.

In total this season, Martin has refereed 19 matches, showing 74 yellow cards and three reds.

Match Reports

Match Report: Sheffield United 4 PNE 1

29 April 2023

Preston North End’s chances of finishing in the Play-Offs ended following a 4-1 defeat to the already-promoted Sheffield United.

Anel Ahmedhodžić opened the scoring in the 38^th minute, before half-time substitute Liam Delap netted his first goal for the club to level in the second period.

The Blades were soon back ahead, though, through John Fleck, and Iliman Ndiaye and Oli McBurnie then added to the scoring.

North End started the match brightly and were enjoying their fair share of possession, creating chances through Troy Parrott – whose effort was blocked – and Josh Onomah, who produced a save from goalkeeper Wes Foderingham.

The hosts then started to grow into the game and could have found the lead on 21 minutes when Ndiaye broke with speed and slipped the ball through to Tommy Doyle, who was denied by a great stop at close range by Freddie Woodman.

PNE’s No.1 was beaten on 36 minutes, though, as Ahmedhodžić rose highest on the end of Doyle’s corner and his header went in off the post.

Doyle nearly made it two in the next attack for the Blades as he looked to find the bottom corner, only for Woodman to tip round the post.

His work for the half wasn’t over yet, with the goalkeeper then required to tip Oliver Norwood’s dipping 30-yard free-kick over the crossbar.

Three minutes into the second period, Tom Cannon so nearly had the leveller as the ball broke kindly in his direction, but his effort was saved at close range by Foderingham.

The hosts then came even closer at the other end, firstly through Ndiaye who showed good feet before having a strike saved by Woodman, and the rebound from James McAtee was then blocked on the line by Andrew Hughes.

PNE levelled the game on 63 minutes with a great goal as Potts was found in space on the right and he drilled a brilliant cross in for half-time substitute Delap to tap in from close range.

It seemed like North End had the momentum at that stage but the Blades broke quickly through Daniel Jebbison ten minutes later, who backheeled for Fleck and Hughes threw himself in front of the effort, but that only helped the ball loop over Woodman and into the back of the net.

A third goal came just a couple of minutes later when Jebbison found Ndiaye alone in the area to finish, and McBurnie then volleyed home a fourth to cap off a promotion party at Bramall Lane.

Sheffield United line-up: Foderingham; Basham, Ahmedhodžić, Robinson (Egan, 82); Bogle, Norwood, Doyle (Berge, 61), Lowe; McAtee (Fleck, 72), Sharp (Jebbison, 61), Ndiaye (McBurnie, 82). Subs not used: Davies, Baldock.

PNE line-up: Woodman; Storey (Delap, 45), Bauer, Hughes; Potts, Ledson (Woodburn, 88), Onomah (McCann, 69), Johnson, Fernández; Cannon, Parrott (Leigh, 88). Subs not used: Cornell, Lindsay, Slater.

Attendance: 30,718.

Referee: Mr S Martin.

Ticket News

Sheffield United Tickets On Sale

25 April 2023

Tickets for our away game against Sheffield United remain on general sale.

Preston North End will head to Bramall Lane for a 3pm kick-off on Saturday 29^th April for the penultimate match of the Championship campaign.

The club have been allocated 2,714 tickets in the lower tier for this fixture, but please note only PNE fans with a previous purchase history can buy tickets for this fixture.

Tickets will be available to buy online from www.mypne.com until 1pm on Friday, while sales can be bought in person from the ticket office and over the phone on 0344 856 1966 until 5pm.

Collections can be made until 6pm, while tickets can also be picked up at Bramall Lane from 1.30pm on the day of the game, from the black collection kiosk which is adjacent to the ticket office, located at the bottom of the main car park on Cherry Street.

Ticket Prices

Adults £33
Seniors (60+) £26
Students* and U22s £21
U18s £15.40

*Students must be in full-time education with proof of a valid student card.

Please note, those under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult.

Disabled Supporter Information

There are ten tickets available for wheelchair users and a complimentary carer ticket will be provided for each, if required.

Prices for supporters in a wheelchair and ambulant disabled supporters can be found below:

Adults £26
Seniors (60+) £26
Students* and U22s £21
U18s £15.40

Coach Travel

Coach travel will be available for this fixture from both Deepdale and Leyland, with a departure time of 11am.

Travel is priced at £14 per Ambassador and £16 per non-Ambassador.

Car Parking

There are four disabled parking spaces available free of charge, which are located in the Cherry Street car park next to the wheelchair entrance.

Spaces can be bought by visiting the Deepdale ticket office or calling 0344 856 1966; please be prepared to provide your full name and car registration number when booking.

Supporters can also secure a parking space near the ground by clicking here.

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