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Match Reports

Match Report: PNE 2 Sheffield United 2

18 January 2022

Match Reports

Match Report: PNE 2 Sheffield United 2

18 January 2022

Goals from Alan Browne and Emil Riis in the second half turned around a two-goal deficit to earn a point for ten-man Preston North End at home to Sheffield United.

North End went into the half-time break a man and two goals down, with Jayden Bogle and Billy Sharp on the scoresheet for the visitors, while Andrew Hughes saw red.

Alan Browne pulled a goal back for the home side in the second half and PNE kept pushing for that elusive second, and it arrived with a minute of normal time to go, as Riis poked home at the far post.

Ryan Lowe made two changes to his side from Saturday’s draw with Birmingham City, with Tom Barkhuizen and Scott Sinclair in to replace Greg Cunningham and Ched Evans, as both Ben Whiteman and Daniel Iversen made their 50th appearances for the club.

Barkhuizen was involved in the first real chance of the game, getting forward from his left wing back position to pull the ball back for Hughes, who saw his shot saved at the near post.

On 12 minutes, North End broke in numbers and Emil Riis did well to feed it through for Sinclair, but Foderingham came out on top one-on-one.

The visitors then went straight down the other end to come close themselves, with Iliman Ndiaye producing a great fingertip save out of Daniel Iversen down low to his left.

The Blades wouldn’t have to wait long for the lead, though, as Bogle fired a deflected shot under Iversen from the edge of the box after he had saved John Egan’s header from a corner.

They then had the advantage of men on the pitch as well as the scoreline on 38 minutes when David Webb showed Hughes a red card as he was adjudged to have brought down Rhian Brewster inside the area. Sharp stepped up for the visitors to fire down the middle from the spot to give them a two-goal lead at half-time.

Ndiaye came close to extending that advantage to three just a minute into the second period, but an acrobatic diving save from Iversen kept him out.

At the other end, North End so nearly got on the scoresheet themselves, with Barkhuizen’s floating cross finding the head of Browne, and his effort had to be tipped over the bar by Foderingham.

The Sheffield United ‘keeper then frustrated Daniel Johnson and Emil Riis in the 69th minute, with the latter’s shot in particular testing the shot-stopper as he was played through by Sepp van den Berg.

However, he could do nothing about Browne’s effort a few moments later, with the skipper sending a powerful low effort past the goalkeeper after Johnson had pulled the ball back to him from the byline.

The Lilywhites kept pushing for an equaliser and it came through striker Riis, with substitute Ched Evans delivering a superb cross for the Dane to convert at the back post with a minute remaining, earning a share of the spoils for the hosts.

PNE line-up: Iversen; van den Berg, Bauer, Hughes; Potts (Rafferty, 45), Whiteman, Browne, Johnson, Barkhuizen (Evans, 65); Riis, Sinclair (Cunningham, 39). Subs not used: Ripley, Lindsay, McCann, Maguire.

Sheffield United line-up: Foderingham; Basham, Egan, Robinson; Bogle, Norwood, Hourihane, Ndiaye (Berge, 84), Stevens (Norrington-Davies, 84); Brewster (McGoldrick, 70), Sharp. Subs not used: Eastwood, Burke, , Slater, Gordon.

Attendance: 12,954 (2,510 away).

Referee: Mr D Webb.

 


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