TOM STUNS BLUEBIRDS
TOM CLARKE stunned Cardiff with an 89thminute winner to hand the Bluebirds a third successive defeat.
The Preston defender headed home from a corner to give his side a deserved win and extend their unbeaten run to nine games.
It means Cardiff have lost three on the bounce in the Championship for first time since boss Neil Warnock took charge.
It was a scrappy goal which decided a scrappy game, but Preston are heading towards the play-offs just as Cardiff are stumbling.
Warnock recalled Lee Tomlin in the hope of sparking a revival after back-to-back defeats.
But the midfielder was unable to provide any spark during a drab first-half where both sides lacked quality.
Neither side could muster a shot on target, but Preston enjoyed more possession and forced Bluebirds centre-backs Bruno Manga and Sol Bamba into some hasty clearances.
Preston did have an early chance for Daryl Horgan, but the midfielder shot high and wide after failing to hold his balance.
DANGER
Bamba earned the first yellow card for a trip on Preston’s Ben Pearson, before two Preston players followed him into the book.
Alan Browne and Tom Barkhuizen’s bookings were caused more by frustration than danger as the Bluebirds struggled to create.
A goalless first half was short on incident as well as skill, before Tomlin gradually became more influential.
The former Bristol City man drew a third Preston booking when Pearson was shown yellow for an ankle tap, but it remained scrappy stuff.
Tomlin’s industry put Kenneth Zohore into space inside the Preston penalty box just past the hour, but the big Dane lacked his normal sharpness and the chance went astray.
Preston began to catch Cardiff on the break and substitute Callum Robinson should have done better in the 73rd minute when he failed to pick the right pass.
It looked as though it would end goalless until Preston worked a corner which Cardiff failed to defend properly.
The ball bounced around and Clarke was left unchallenged to nod the ball past a stranded Neil Etheridge from five yards to steal all three points for Preston.