LILYWHITES THROW HAT IN FOR TOP SIX
PRESTON boss Alex Neil was happy to tip his hat to his players after a superb second-half performance saw them come from behind to beat their Lancashire rivals and keep their bowler-wearing fans dreaming of the Championship play offs.
Thousands of North End supporters made the short trip to the Macron Stadium, donning their bowler hats for the annual ‘Gentry Day’ when they show their support for all those connected with the club who have passed away in the last 12 months.
And many of those hats ended up on the pitch when injuryplagued substitute Sean Maguire completed his brace in added time to seal a 3-1 win that moves Preston to within three points of their play-off rivals.
“I’m delighted,” said Neil. “Local derbies are something the fans want to win and there aren’t many of them for us this season so it was a big day for the club.
“Gentry Day carries a lot of weight with the supporters but more importantly for us it was a game we needed to win to give ourselves an opportunity to stake a claim at the top end of the table.
“We knew a patient buildup would be how we beat them and the lads carried it out spectacularly well.
“It was fantastic for Sean after the three or four months he’s been out – I don’t think he could have dreamed of a better game back and to come on and deliver what he did tells you everything you need to know about him.”
The visitors dominated the early proceedings with the first chance falling to Billy Bodin, whose shot was blocked before the same player saw a header comfortably saved by Ben Alnwick.
A Preston goal looked inevitable but instead it was the hosts who struck first from their first attack when a corner was swung in by Filipe Morais and met by Dorian Dervite’s head before being slammed home by a grateful Mark Beevers.
It hardly seemed fair on the visitors who almost equalised when a mazy run and shot from the lively Tom Barkhuizen was tipped over.
The second half promised a Preston comeback and it didn’t disappoint when after 53 minutes the impressive Callum Robinson picked the ball up in midfield before placing a delightfuly weighted ball through to Barkhuizen, who easily outpaced Dervite down the left and slotted the ball past Alnwick for the equaliser.
A double substitution by Neil betrayed his intent and the manager’s ambition was rewarded with another fine piece of play from Robinson, who danced down the left before placing a low cross for substitute Maguire to finish from close range.
And the Irishman completed his stunning cameo with another poacher’s goal when he netted from Josh Harrop’s square pass.
“In the second half they were better than us and we have to hold our hands up and admit that,” said Bolton boss Phil Parkinson.
“We did a lot of good things in the first half but we got punished by a team who looked more threatening than us. The goal they got back visibly lifted the team and you could see that when they were kicking towards their 3,500 fans.
“We didn’t respond and couldn’t get a foothold in the game. This is a setback for us but we’ve got to dust ourselves down and think carefully about the team selection for Reading.”