Preston North End took a point back to Lancashire on Gentry Day after drawing 0-0 against Watford.
More than 2,000 fans made the journey for the club’s annual tradition, and they could have been celebrating just before half-time when Andrew Hughes sent a strike wide from close range.
Will Keane then came closest in the second period, and PNE also limited their hosts to few chances to secure a tenth clean sheet of the campaign.
North End made three changes from the defeat at Birmingham City, with Greg Cunningham, Jordan Storey and Milutin Osmajić coming into the side.
Robbie Brady was switched over to right wing-back with Hughes on the opposite side, while Jack Whatmough pushed forward to play alongside Ali McCann in midfield.
It was Whatmough who had the first opportunity of the day inside five minutes as he headed inches wide from a promising position on the end of Robbie Brady’s corner.
A couple of minutes on, Freddie Woodman made a relatively comfortable stop to keep out Tom Dele-Bashiru’s deflected effort, and then watched Yáser Asprilla whistle a shot across goal and wide.
North End were then no doubt relieved to see Jamal Lewis blaze a strike over in the 13th minute after it fell kindly for the left wing-back.
Emil Riis was involved heavily in the first-half action, launching long throw-ins into the Hornets’ box and he also forced Daniel Bachmann into a decent save as the two went head-to-head inside the area.
The biggest chance of the half came in its final minute when Cunningham’s looping cross landed with the unmarked Hughes, and he had his head in his hands when he slammed wide from a promising position.
PNE started the second half brightly, having plenty of opportunities to get the ball into the box from corners and free-kicks, while at the other end Wesley Hoedt sent a speculative effort no more than a few inches wide of Woodman’s top corner from all of 35 yards.
It looked as though the travelling Gentry were ready to celebrate in the 69th minute as Keane met a volley as sweetly as you’d like, however it whistled just the wrong side of the post.
Both sides made attacking changes as they looked to find a winner, but the points were shared at Vicarage Road.
Watford line-up: Bachmann; Porteous, Sierralta, Hoedt; Andrews, Kayembe (Chakvetadze, 62), Dele-Bashiru, Lewis; Bayo (Rajović, 61), Asprilla, Dennis (Koné, 81). Subs not used: Hamer, Ince, Livermore, Pollock, Martins, Morris.
PNE line-up: Woodman; Storey, Lindsay, Cunningham; Brady, Whatmough, McCann, Hughes; Keane; Osmajić (Stewart, 82), Riis (Frøkjær, 82). Subs not used: Cornell, Woodburn, Holmes, T.Mawene, Best, N.Mawene, Seary.
Attendance: 19,374 (2,022 PNE fans).
Referee: Mr J Bell.
