Ben Whiteman says Preston North End are heading into Tuesday’s Lancashire derby knowing they “need to win the game”.
It’s the first meeting between the two sides at Deepdale since the 2013 League Cup fixture when Tom Clarke earned a late victory for the Lilywhites.
The Seasiders came out on top in the last game between the two, though, winning 2-0 at Bloomfield Road last October.
Ben told iFollow PNE: “I think that always sticks in the back of your mind. The performance at their place wasn’t great, and it’s about tomorrow night now, that’s in the past now so all focus is on tomorrow night.
“The vibe that you get around the place, it’s a massive game, and as players it’s a massive game for us as well.
“We’re going into it knowing we need to win the game. The past two results haven’t been good enough and we want to put the performance right and get the three points.”
Those past two games have seen North End beaten by Luton Town and Derby County either side of the international break.
Manager Ryan Lowe asked for more fight from his players after the Pride Park defeat and part of that message was for some of the senior players to come to the fore.
“It’s down to us players at the end of the day,” added Ben. “We’re the ones that go on the pitch and obviously the management team give us the gameplan, but sometimes things happen in a game.
“Two sendings off in a game, it was a strange game to sort of pick out, but at the end of the day they’ve scored from a set piece. That’s probably the most disappointing thing.
“I didn’t think there was much in the game, but again it’s about us tomorrow night to make that right.”
A big turnout is expected at Deepdale and it is all set to be a special occasion under the lights, given that the club will be celebrating exactly 100 years since the birth of its greatest ever player, Sir Tom Finney.
With that added support inside the ground, Ben is expecting the supporters to be a helping hand.
“It’s massive,” he said. “The fans in there, once they get going, it’s a great atmosphere and one that we’re all looking forward to tomorrow night.
“Once they get going and they’re on our side it’s an unbelievable feeling and one that can push us over the line, so hopefully we can put on a performance tomorrow night to get the fans behind us.”
Watch Ben’s full interview on iFollow PNE above.