Frankie McAvoy is looking for PNE to find that “wee bit extra” to go and take all three points from drawing situations.
His side came from behind against Stoke City on Tuesday evening to earn a point, with Ben Whiteman cancelling out Nick Powell’s early opener.
The draw extended North End’s unbeaten run to nine matches in all competitions, but that is now five draws in succession and while happy with the form, the head coach is looking for his side to go and find the lethal touch in the final third.
He told iFollow PNE: “Sometimes you’ve got to look at the opposition and say they played better and what we’ve got to try and do is dissect the game, look at it and see what we think we can improve on going forward because we’re going to face something similar on Saturday away to QPR and hopefully we’re ready to go and try and compete.
“But as I’ve said, the last four games at home we’ve taken eight points out of 12. I don’t think anyone can disagree that we look as though we’re tough to beat, I think everybody’s given us that credit.
“What we need to try and do is try and find that wee bit extra where we make ourselves into a team that can go and win games and that’s the next bit we need to try and do.”
Powell’s goal within the first seven minutes was part of a fast start from the visitors who created a few good early opportunities, with Daniel Iversen required to keep out the Potters both in that period and in the second half too.
It was a moment of quality, though, that drew North End level, with Whiteman beating goalkeeper Adam Davies with a 20-yard free-kick.
Frankie said: “I felt it was a magnificent strike from Ben Whiteman to get us back into the game. We had a good chat at half-time because I felt that they were definitely the most potent team.
“I felt that at times you could see us growing into the game a bit. In the second half I thought we actually started well, kept the same system and we were looking at changing it at half-time, but the guys looked as though they’d found a way of dealing with Stoke and then trying to impose our own game on them.
“We probably didn’t get our wing backs as high as we would have hoped if I’m being brutally honest tonight as well.
“I felt Daniel [Iversen] when he was called upon made some excellent saves to keep us in the game and you’re just hoping we can get opportunities and chances in the final third.”
Hear more from Frankie in his full interview on iFollow PNE.