Extending his contract for an additional 12 months, Andrew Hughes wants to stay at his “second home”, Preston North End for as long as possible.
The defender, who last signed a contract in 2022, has had an option exercised by the club which will see him stay at Deepdale until at least the summer of 2025.
Having been at the club for five and a half years now, he’s delighted to extend his time as a Lilywhite.
“I’m over the moon with it,” he said. “Just to have that peace of mind and to know I’ve got that extra year, I’m really happy with it.
“Things chop and change so quickly but to get that extra year locked in for myself and my family, I’m really pleased.
“It’s my second home here. I’ve loved every minute of it so hopefully I can stay here as long as possible.”
A few injuries and niggles along the way have prevented the Welshman hitting the 200-appearance mark sooner, however he’s now just four matches away from reaching the milestone in a North End shirt.
He added: “If you'd said when I was a little boy that I'd get 200 appearances for Preston in the Championship I would’ve bitten someone’s hand off, so to be so close to that is something I’m really proud of.
“Moving up from League One you’re always thinking, ‘Can I get in the team? Can you express yourself? Can you staple yourself in that league?’
“So to be so close to the 200 mark is a real honour for myself.”
Hughesy has featured 22 times for North End so far this season, including all of the opening eight matches of the league term which saw PNE go unbeaten and win six.
The 31-year-old said when he signed his last contract in 2022 that he wanted to achieve success during his time at Deepdale, and that’s a feeling which hasn’t gone away.
“That’s every player’s ambition really,” he said. “They don’t want to just tinkle their way through their career and before you know it it’s gone.
“We all want to look back at the special moments in my career so that’s something I still really want to do with Preston.
“I think we showed that in the early part of the season with the run we went on. To be so close to the Play-Offs after a rocky stage just goes to show that anything’s possible.
“I think with a good result at Leeds, you never know what can happen, and there’s so many games and points to play for. We just need to give it our all.”