Mick won’t be beaten
CARDIFF continue to ride the Mick McCarthy wave, which now threatens to wash away Bournemouth on the south coast on Wednesday.
Seven games ago, the thought that Bournemouth against Cardiff could be a play-off shoot-out seemed the stuff of fantasy.
But such has been the transformation of the Bluebirds under McCarthy that a handsome win in midweek would allow them to leapfrog the Cherries.
Cardiff are unbeaten under McCarthy with five successive and increasingly emphatic victories, following a tentative two opening draws.
This result never looked in doubt from the moment Kieffer Moore hammered home a penalty with two minutes played.
Josh Murphy swept home a second goal within a minute of the restart before Preston imploded – failing with two penalties inside two minutes, both superbly saved by keeper Dillon Phillips. That gave
Cardiff the breathing space to regather their composure and they punished a feeble Preston defence with further goals for Marlon Pack and substitute Mark Harris.
Phillips had been the back-up keeper to Alex Smithies until recently, but now centre stage he is relishing the spotlight as he showed with his double penalty save.
First, he denied Paul Gallagher just past the hour mark, diving to his right after Harry Wilson had fouled Anthony Gordon.
Then, after Aden Flint had upended Gallagher as he tried to save the rebound, Phillips proved he can stop them on the left, saving from Ched Evans. McCarthy admitted: “I’m pleased he did that because it could have been a much different press conference. It would have been a very nervy last 25 minutes at 2-1.”
On his record he said: ”It’s the best start I’ve ever had, let me tell you! It would have been beyond my wildest dreams to draw the first two and win the next five.
“But there’s been no silver bullet here. The players have done all the hard work.”
Preston manager Alex Neil admitted: “It was bizarre. We conceded a penalty in the first minute.
“And then to give a goal away in the first 30 seconds of the second half was just incredible, it was naivety on a ridiculous scale.”
CARDIFF CITY: Phillips 9; Morrison 7, Flint 6, Nelson 6; Ng 7, Vaulks 7, Pack 7, Bennett 7; Wilson 8 (Bacuna 69, 6); Murphy 7 (Ojo 60, 7), Moore 8 (Harris 77).
Unused subs: Smithies, Brown, Bagan, Sang, Williams, Watters.
Preston North End: Iversen 6; Browne 5 (Rafferty 82, 5), Storey 5 , Lindsay 6, Hughes 6, Cunningham 5; Whiteman 5 (Gallagher 61, 6), Johnson 6 (Gordon 61, 8), Molumby 6 (Potts 72, 6); Evans 5, Riis 5 (Barkhuizen 46, 6).
Unused subs: Ripley, Ven den Berg, Huntington, Sinclair.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Dillon Phillips. Two superb penalty saves and safe in every other aspect. REFEREE: Jeremy Simpson 8.