Manager Ryan Lowe thanked the Preston North End supporters who travelled to Spain to watch their side take on Bruno’s Magpies.
After hundreds of fans made the journey to Campoamor in 2022 to see PNE take on Getafe, arguably even more were at Pinatar Arena on Wednesday evening as North End faced Gibraltar National League side Bruno’s Magpies.
The Lilywhites came out 3-0 winners on the day and, following full-time, the hundreds of supporters in attendance surrounded the players and staff for a group photo.
Ryan said: “That’s what this is about. The fans spend their hard-earned money coming to watch and support us.
“We know it’s only pre-season and the result’s irrelevant, but it was amazing. They filled the whole stand.
“It was nice that we had a stand for them as well; they still had all their flags up and we got our picture which we’ll get every year as long as I’m here and we’ll continue to support with them because without them we’re no one, are we?
👏 Unbelievable. #pnefc pic.twitter.com/0h4Bx8ZaBp
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) July 5, 2023
“On the road away from home, at home, they’ve been excellent and again they all came out in their numbers and they’ve been well behaved so fair play.
“We could have had plenty of training games against teams, but we’ve got to make sure we get a little stadium or somewhere where our fans are welcome like they were here so a big thank you from me, the staff and the players. It’s much appreciated and they’ll hopefully have a good night.”
PNE went into the half-time break level after an even first 45 which saw limited chances created by either side, before wholesale changes were made at the break.
The second XI was a much younger side but goals from Felipe Rodriguez-Gentile, Noah Mawene and Kian Taylor earned North End a 3-0 victory.
Ryan added: “We know what the pros are doing. We gave them three objectives today, to do things with the ball and without the ball.
“There’s stuff that we were fine with and some stuff that we weren’t, but that’s what pre-season’s for.
“The main thing is that everyone comes off the pitch unscathed and not injured, and we were only going to give them 45 anyway and then the kids came on and opened it up.
“It was a little bit different in the second half. The first half they had two banks of four, they dropped into a deep block and we couldn’t really get out.
“We changed a little bit in the second half. We went with two eights and the youngsters gave us a little bit of energy.
“It’s nice to score some goals and for the youngsters to get on the scoresheet, but the pros are just protecting themselves a little bit at the moment, which I’m fine with.”
Hear more from the manager in his full interview on iFollow PNE.