After defeat at the weekend, goalkeeper Declan Rudd feels he and his teammates have a point to prove when Hull City come to Deepdale on Boxing Day.
North End return home for the final two games of 2018, and when the Tigers visit on Wednesday afternoon, Rudd insists the Lilywhites will be looking to return to winning ways quickly and reignite their impressive form of late.
Speaking to iFollow PNE ahead of the clash with Nigel Adkins' side, the 27-year-old said: "I think it's a one off game of the year, pretty much everyone is off work, people get tickets for Christmas and everyone is with their families at Christmas so they all go together and enjoy it.
"All the kids go and they are still excited over Christmas and it is a great atmosphere and as a squad we have got a point to prove after Saturday that the run we were on, with only one loss in 12, we want to get back on a winning streak and we want to go unbeaten for another period of time.
"I think it adds to the occasion that we want to go out there and chase those teams at the top. We aren't happy sitting where we are, we want to climb that table and get up there and compete and have something to play for at the end of the season."
The visitors arrive at Deepdale in good form themselves, unbeaten in their last five games and sitting just a point behind PNE in the Championship table, and Dec isn't surprised by their run given the quality in the Hull side but knows North End can compete with any team in the division.
"You look at some of their players and some of the quality they've got is still from the team from when they were in the Premier League so I think they have been in a false position for the last few years. But we are at home and our squad of players, in my opinion, is just as good as theirs.
"Just because we haven't got all of those players that have played in the Premier League, doesn't mean that we can't compete and go out there and give it our best shot. They are in a good run of form, we have been in a good run of form and it should be a good game to watch and a good game to play in.
North End will once again be short on numbers for the festive fixtures, after Louis Moult was forced off early in the second half at Hillsborough, but the Lilywhites' 'keeper feels the squad pulls together even more in adversity and admits it makes victories even sweeter for the squad.
"There are lads playing out of position, lads coming in that haven't played and it brings us all together because we know we have got to dig in. There's nothing you can do, we've got a lot of injuries but we've got to get on with it, go out there and do what you can.
"It gets you together and it might not be the prettiest because we've got a lot of players who aren't playing in their natural positions but it makes those wins that you get when you have got a lot of injuries. It makes them more enjoyable because you know you've had to give that extra bit to get through it and get the win.
"We still look at every game the same, we don't think about the injuries we have got when we are out there, the lads give it everything and no matter where they are playing they will still put in a performance."
Watch the full interview with Declan on iFollow PNE now by clicking on the video above.