Jack Ryan feels he is back on track after two goals in the Academy’s 6-1 demolition of Mansfield Town.
The young Lilywhites progressed to the second round of the FA Youth Cup with an excellent performance at Deepdale and the frontman grabbed a brace; the two coming within three minutes of each other right at the end of the first half.
Speaking to PNE.Com after the game, the North End No.9 was delighted with the overall team display and with his own goalscoring run out at Deepdale.
“It was a good win,” he told the official website. “The boys worked very hard and we are looking forward to the next round now.
“We worked hard all week running up to the game and it was good to get the win.
“It was good to get a couple of goals. It hasn’t been my lucky day the last couple of games, so I was pleased to get back on track.”
The U18 Lilywhites came out the traps at pace and were 1-0 up inside ten minutes, a plan Ryan admitted was something they had worked on.
“We had a meeting before the game and the coaches talked about putting pressure on the back four of the opposition.
“They had seen them play and thought we could press them and cause problems and press early and we got a goal and controlled the game from early on.”
The torrential rain did not stop PNE playing some excellent football on the night and with another home tie to look forward to in the next round, Ryan and co are already ready to get back out there.
“It was a very big pitch and the surface was slick, so it allowed us to do what we do in training every day; pass the ball, create chances and score goals, which we did.
“The finishes were good and we probably deserved more goals in the end, but we are happy with what we’ve got.
“In the second half we got a bit fatigued, but we got the result. It was good under the lights at a big stadium and we can’t wait for the next round now.”