Tomorrow’s game against Hull City could rank highly in the career of Greg Cunningham given that it’s the first time he will see the PNE fans since his first stint with the club.
Greg, who re-joined the club in January after three years away from Deepdale, is looking forward to the welcoming of supporters back through the turnstiles.
He told iFollow PNE: “It’s the return of the 12th man for the first time since I’ve been back so I’m really looking forward to it.
“We want to make sure that we put in a performance that the fans can be proud of. They’ve been away for a long time, these last 18 months or so have been tough times for everyone so it’s nice that we can get fans back in and enjoy watching live football again.
“I’ve said from minute one since I came to the club that the fans have been amazing. Regardless of the times that we’re going through, they’ve always had our backs and that’s something that sticks with you throughout your career.
“So hopefully they’ll show up in their numbers tomorrow and create the atmosphere like they’ve always done at Deepdale.
“Let’s get the fans in, it’ll be rocking I’m sure, and it’ll be probably one of my favourite games all going well if we get the win, we’ll be happy.
Saturday could be a special occasion for Greg for different reasons, too, given that he is in line to make his 300th appearance in club football.
Over 100 of them have come in a lilywhite shirt, and he’s had some memorable moments in that period.
Greg added: “The Arsenal one in the FA Cup was huge, a full crowd, going 1-0 up that night as well. The place was absolutely rocking so that was one that’s stuck with me.
“Probably my first one [for PNE] too, the first game of the season, was Middlesbrough at home. I know it was probably a bit of a boring 0-0 draw but again I think it’s the firsts that stick with you. There’ve been some great games but they’re probably the two that have stuck with me.”
Hull will be the team facing Greg and his team-mates on Saturday and will head into the new season in a positive mindset after promotion from League One last season.
“They’ll be flying,” said Greg. “They’ll be full of confidence after their successful season last year, they’re back in the Champ again so we know what to expect, we’ve done our homework. It’ll be a tough game, a tough opener but we’re looking forward to the home game and to get the win.
“We’ve put the work in, the boys have come back in great nick. We’ve worked very hard over these past few weeks on implementing the game plan Frankie wants us to do. We’ve put the graft in and now it’s time to show it out on the pitch.”
Watch Greg's full interview with iFollow at the top of the page.