After having played in either blue and white hooped or striped shirts, Preston North End starting sporting the famous white shirts and navy blue shorts which gave inspiration to Spurs and a myriad of other clubs around the country. This kit eventually earned them the nickname The Lilywhites. Like the club colours the badge similarly has had a single-minded theme, namely a paschal lamb. The lamb is that of St. Wilfrid who is the Patron Saint of Preston. The reason for the three letters was quite simply to give a general balance to the arms — modern graphic designers of soulless corporate logos take note!
Preston North End eventually dropped the three red roses from their crest. Honour and history go hand in hand in Preston. North End is the only club from the founder members of the Football League who have played continuously on the same ground. Deepdale may have changed dramatically over the years, but this does not mean that the club belies its rich and illustrious history. One of the new stands is named after Sir Tom Finney, the footballing legend, whose genius and gentlemanly conduct was and still is an example for all footballers to follow and who brought great credit, not just to the game, but also to his home town of Preston.
Proud Preston indeed. Comments RSS. You are commenting using your WordPress. You are commenting using your Google account. You are commenting using your Twitter account.
You are commenting using your Facebook account. Preston had a good run in the FA Cup until being knocked out by Portsmouth in the sixth round. The football that Saturday went ahead as Neville Chamberlain did not declare war on Germany until Sunday, 3rd September. The government immediately imposed a ban on the assembly of crowds and as a result the Football League competition was brought to an end.
On 14th September, the government gave permission for football clubs to play friendly matches. In the interests of public safety, the number of spectators allowed to see these games was limited to 8, These arrangements were later revised, and clubs were allowed gates of 15, from tickets purchased on the day of the game through the turnstiles. The government imposed a fifty mile travelling limit and the Football League divided all the clubs into seven regional areas where games could take place.
In the season Preston finished in second place, only two points behind the winners, Bury. After the declaration of war in September , Adolf Hitler did not order the attack of France or Britain as he believed there was still a chance to negotiate an end to the conflict between the countries. This period became known as the Phoney War.
As Britain had not experienced any bombing raids, the Football League decided to start a new competition entitled the Football League War Cup. The entire competition of games including replays was condensed into nine weeks. However, by the time the final took place, the "Phoney War" had come to an end.
In the days leading up to the final, the British Expeditionary Force was being evacuated from Dunkirk. In the first two rounds Preston beat Bury and Bolton. He also scored a hat-trick in the fourth-round tie against Manchester City.
Preston reached the final by beating Newcastle United Preston played Arsenal in front of a 60, crowd. Arsenal was awarded a penalty after only three minutes but Leslie Compton hit the foot of the post with the spot kick.
Preston dominated the rest of the match but Dennis Compton managed to get the equaliser just before the end of full-time. The replay took place at Ewood Park, the ground of Blackburn Rovers. The first goal was as a result of a move that included Tom Finney and Jimmy Dougal before Robert Beattie put the ball in the net. Frank Gallimore put through his own goal but from the next attack, Beattie scored again.
It was the final goal of the game and Preston ended up the winners of the cup. The nineteen year old Andrew McLaren scored all six goals in the victory. There is no doubt that during this period Preston was the best football club in England. During the season Tom Finney played in 41 games.
Top scorers for that season were: Dougal 32 and McLaren It has been argued by Jack Rollin Soccer at War: that: "The first club to benefit from a youth policy to any marked degree was Preston North End, who owed success in to their exceptional pre-war structure. By the club was already running two teams in local junior circles when the chairman James Taylor decided upon a scheme to fill the gap between school leavers and junior clubs by forming a Juvenile Division of the Preston and District League open to year-olds.
Rollin points out that by over youngsters were being trained in groups of eight of the club's senior players voluntarily assisting in evening coaching. Robert Beattie was one of those involved in this coaching. This great Preston team was broken up by the Second World War. The British Army invited some of the best footballers to became Physical Training instructors at Aldershot.
Others served abroad. Seventy professional football players were killed during the Second World War. Taylor scored a hat trick while playing as a guest for Middlesbrough against Bradford City on 4th April He was killed in a motor cycle accident six days later.
While some footballers joined the armed forces, others found occupation in the support services. I am not quite sure that we shall succeed in attaining all the objects with which we set out; it is not a certainty that we shall carry any The break-up of the Everton team as we knew it last season may have a good deal in influencing the future of the Union.
Liverpool was our headquarters, you know, and our registered offices were there. But the secretary, John Cameron, has gone to London and Bell the chairman will not, as far as I know, play for anybody. The official website of the Football League claims that the first football manager to bring in night matches, under floodlight, was Herbert Chapman of Huddersfield, in the late s. In fact, it had been tried before, in Birmingham and Lincoln but the lighting wasn't powerful enough to make the game visible, and maybe Herbert was the first manager to introduce floodlit football on a regular basis, but Alfred Frankland and a squad of engineers from Dick, Kerr's English Electric factory actually managed to make floodlit football a possibility.
The unique relationship which existed between the company and the Army barracks at Fulwood was the key, and Dick, Kerr's engineers came up with the solution. Two Army surplus searchlights should do the trick. So, these were duly ordered from the War Office - can you believe it? To augment those, 40 carbide flares were put into position around the edge of the pitch, also supplied by Frankland's contacts in Fulwood barracks.
Flares were placed at the turnstiles and to celebrate this extraordinary occasion not one, but three brass bands were requisitioned to lead torch-lit processions of spectators to the ground.
And the Pathe News team was alerted to this experimental exercise in pre Christmas jollity and turned out to make of it what they could.
As a spectacle, it was far more exciting than any of the previous Christmas processions and celebrations for which Lancashire is famous. Men in flat caps, women in large hats, small children skipping along, processed to the Deepdale ground, so that later they could tell their own children, 'I was there when we played football by searchlight! Back to their old selves.
Lily did her Blind-Man's Buff impression, mimicking searching for little Jennie Harris through the dark by touch only. It could all have gone horribly wrong, but I doubt it, because even horribly wrong would have been funny.
And it was. Hilarious mayhem ensued. Picture it - on the touchline was the famous Bob Holmes whom I've mentioned before, throwing whitewashed balls on to the pitch, in the stands were scores of big lusty Lancashire lasses with their husbands, doubled up with laughter, and on the pitch were Lily and Alice and the others, wondering what damage they could do in the darkness. Except that it wasn't dark. It was glaringly bright, until one of the searchlights got an airlock and went out barely into the first half.
Then one of the searchlight operators from the factory became very excited by a defensive tackle, and turned up his searchlight so strongly that both attacker and defender were temporarily blinded and keeled over. Then Jennie Harris, as willing as ever, kept making searching runs up the left, only to be halted by the sudden glare of flash-bulbs and skied the ball from 5 yards out.
Although football dominated my early life - that should probably read my entire life come to think of it - opportunities for watching the game were restricted. Apart from anything else, I was always too busy playing. But as a proud Prestonian, I was acutely aware of Preston North End Football Club and, in common with the other lads who kicked a rubber ball around the back fields of Holme Slack, my dream was to be the next Alex James.
James was the top star of the day, a genius. There wasn't much about him physically, but he had sublime skills and the knack of letting the ball do the work. He wore the baggiest of baggy shorts and his heavily gelled hair was parted down the centre. On the odd occasion when I was able to watch a game at Deepdale, sometimes sneaking under the turnstiles when the chap on duty was distracted, I was in awe of James.
Preston were in the Second Division and the general standard of football was not the best, but here was a magic and a mystery about James that mesmerised me. The man behind Preston's capture of James was chairman Jim Taylor, who later signed me and went on to play a major part in my early career.
The son of a railwayman and a native of North Lanarkshire, Alex James was a steelworker when his football talents were first spotted by Raith Rovers in the year of my birth.
Preston were always well served with 'spies' in Scotland and while his short stature and dubious temperament caused a few potential buyers to dither, Jim Taylor was more bullish. Taylor had his man and the signing of James proved a masterstroke. He was box office, the draw card, a player who grabbed your attention and refused to let go. James was a character off the field, too.
He liked clubs - of the night-time variety - owned a car and, by all accounts, enjoyed playing practical jokes on his colleagues. But he was also a perfectionist, a footballer acutely aware of both his ability and his responsibility. The experts scratched their heads about why his talent was being allowed to languish outside the top flight and it wasn't long before Arsenal came in to present him with a bigger stage.
He was my first football hero and my role model and when he was transferred to the Gunners I thought I would never get over it. The kickabouts we had in the fields and on the streets were daily events, sometimes involving dozens and dozens of kids. There were so many bodies around you had to be flippin' good to get a kick. Once you got hold of the ball, you didn't let it go too easily.
That's where I first learned about close control and dribbling. It was a world of make-believe - were children more imaginative in those days? In my mind, this basic field was Deepdale and I was the inside-left, Alex James. I tried to look like him, run like him, juggle the ball and body swerve like him. By being James, I became more confident in my own game. He never knew it, but Alex James played a major part in my development.
James also arrived in North London in headline-making circumstances, but only after a prolonged Nicolas Anelka-like sulk had ensured his departure from Preston North End. That tactic demonstrated the quality the little man with the commodious shorts shared most with his modern-day counterpart — the ability to hit passes so stunningly beautiful that they could adorn the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. In , Preston North End were a club with a rich history but a gloomy-looking future When Bill Shankly landed on their doorstep, they were little more than a moderate Second Division side.
They had been relegated in along with Nottingham Forest and had struggled ever since to escape the anonymity of Second Division soccer. In the season before Shankly arrived, they had finished ninth in the table, fourteen points adrift of champions Stoke City. Like so many other industrial cities, Preston suffered appallingly during the thirties. The Depression hit Lancashire hard. Across the country, the number of unemployed rose to 2.
Everywhere, the unemployed protested. In Lancashire, they marched to Preston and in Scotland they descended on Glasgow, while those from Jarrow in the North-east marched bravely to London, pricking the conscience of the nation. The politicians called the unemployed regions Distressed Areas. It somehow sounded better. Unemployment benefit was basic if not downright miserable.
The Means Test, with its crippling rules, ensured that money was only forthcoming if certain stringent criteria were met. And, when money was paid out, it was done so begrudgingly and in small amounts.
Few claimants met the criteria; most survived thanks only to family and friends. Preston was a cotton-spinning town and like all the cotton towns of Lancashire had been severely shaken by the Depression. Almost half a million cotton workers were on the dole.
Exports to India had crashed. Looms lay idle; mills were closing. Shankly was as aware as anyone of the problems of unemployment: he'd seen it all before. In Ayrshire, his family and friends had suffered as the mines closed and it was little better in Carlisle. He'd spent a couple of months on the dole himself and was well aware of the humiliations that unemployment brought. But in case he had forgotten, he was to be rudely awoken by what he saw in Preston. Shankly was lucky. I then parked in a street about a ten minute walk away from Deepdale.
I was going to go for a drink but the Sumners pub was five deep at the bar. So I decided to make for the ground. I got there about an hour before kick off so I had a chance to look around the outside. I particularly liked the Tom Finney "Splash" monument. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the stadium? It was nothing like I remembered, as it looked very modern.
It was a wooden stand last time I went ha ha. The new stands were admiral with great views and plenty of leg room. I had a Potato and Butter Pie from one of the kiosks. The game itself was okay with Derby winning With 3, traveling away fans this made for a good atmosphere. All credit to the Police and stewards, both very polite and relaxed and happy to chat as were the Preston supporters. It was brilliant to get away from where we had parked, got back to the car and left via Junction 31a again and was back on the motorway in under 10 minutes.
Why were you looking forward to visiting the Deepdale football ground? This was a local derby for Blackburn Rovers and my first trip to Deepdale due to Preston not being in the Championship League for some time.. Also, we had sold out our entire away allocation and the game had been built up for sometime in the media.. So I couldn't wait! We went with a local pub who run coaches to every Blackburn away game.
We set off at around pm for what should have been a short 30 minute journey. However, since it was a local derby, the Police stopped us on the outskirts of Preston and made us wait.
We finally arrived at Deepdale at 2pm. We pulled up at a cordoned off area and got off the coach. We had a walk around Deepdale whilst some others off the coach went up to the Summers pub about a ten minute walk away. We needed a soft drink and found a small shop nearby. I also bouth a programme from a seller outside the ground. We experienced no trouble from any home fans. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of Deepdale?
Deepdale is a very historic ground and has a interesting statue of Tom Finney outside. We were housed in the Bill Shankly Kop End.
This was packed due to the small travelling distance. Comment on the game itself, atmosphere, stewards, pies, facilities etc.. The atmosphere was second to none — especially due to the raucous away support. We sang all the time except for when they scored. Preston fans were very good though and the banter made the game enjoyable. Stewards were at the front and didn't bother us. The pies were great. Due to the vast amount of visiting supporters, we had to wait thirty minutes inside the ground before being escorted out.
Those who had travelled by train were compulsorily put onto waiting buses by the Police and driven straight to Preston Railway Station. It was a great day out and the fans were great for both sides. It was even better when we won Why were you looking forward to visiting the Deepdale Football Ground? I was visiting some mates in Liverpool who are at uni there, and while being up north it seemed the perfect opportunity to tick off another ground.
I have been to most other grounds in the Championship League, but due to Preston recently being in League One it's a ground which has slipped through the net. Steve Clarke had just been sacked and we were on a poor run of form, making this game quite exciting as both teams would be expecting a win and I felt the team needed some support. My journey was simple on the day having already travelled to Liverpool, it was a quick train ride of around an hour to Preston station.
From there me and my mates joined up with some other Reading fans and using this guide found Deepdale easily and probably took around mins. However, the weather was awful and rain was coming down in sheets, with flooding in the area we were worried that the game could be cancelled as lower league games in the area were being called off.
As soon as we arrived at Deepdale we spoke to a group of stewards who assured us that the game was going to go ahead. After that relief we took a quick look at the Tom Finney statue and then had a burger from a van outside the away end.
Most supporters seemed to be heading straight inside the stadium as quick as possible due to the weather, but the few preston fans I spoke to seemed friendly. What you thought on seeing the Deepdale ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the stadium?
Even though it seemed we were walking through gale force winds we struggled to the ground and my first impression was very positive as the Deepdale ground itself is very impressive with towering floodlights. The stadium has character and the away end was suitable inside. Inside the ground is equally impressive however one side of the ground is much smaller to the other three. The view from the away end was fantastic. When the game kicked off I was pleased it was going ahead and felt positive that the players would have something to prove, but this optimism faded quickly as Preston took control of the game and we could not get a foothold in the game.
Preston hit the post just before half time but we went in , a scoreline which was not reflective of Preston's domination and flattered reading. I naively hoped for a response which did not come, though our goalkeeper Bond made two fantastic goal line saves. I felt Preston getting frustrated until our skipper McShane brought down Garner who stepped up slotted the penalty away confidently.
Reading didn't look like getting anything and the game was looking to fizzle out until the last 10 minutes when Reading put some string of attacks together the best of which saw Nick Blackman through one on one who shot high over the bar. That was our best chance of the game but Preston won the game deservedly.
The atmosphere was flat from the home end, but I will reserve judgment as the weather did not help things. The Reading fans who made the journey were in good voice with some Xmas songs, but most were disgraced with the performance. We walked straight back to the railway station only to find that our train was delayed over an hour! Considering the bad conditions, the overall day out to a new ground was enjoyable but ruined by the game itself. I would go back to Preston but want to go to a few more new grounds beforehand, but a cup draw or with better form I could see myself making a return visit.
This was my second visit to Deepdale, after enjoying my first. Overall Deepdale is a good ground to visit. We parked at St. We went in to St. Gregory's Social Club next to the school, a very friendly club with both sets of fans enjoying a drink and some food. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the Deepdale Stadium?
It was a well contested game, with both teams in form. Wednesday went down to ten men for the last half hour of the game. Preston were able to capitalise on this and score the only goal of the match. The stewards friendly.
The concourse was a bit tight for a big away following of 5, Wednesday fans. I was looking forward to this game as it was a chance to get another ground ticked off the list and of course follow Brighton away.
Also two consecutive wins of course had made the wait for it that more exciting. It was a game that my friend had suggested to me that we should go to as it was close to his 18th birthday. I also thought Deepdale looked quite an impressive ground whilst looking at it on this guide and I was looking forward to actually seeing it in person.
We left Eastbourne at 6am in the morning and we stopped at Warwick services for around 45 minutes. The journey was traffic free on all the motorway's so quite a stress free journey in all arriving in Preston at 1 o'clock where the coach dropped us off outside the away end. Once we arrived in Preston, the first thing we did was look for a pub.
The ground looks impressive from the outside with it's rather different floodlights than what you'd expect at most other grounds in the country.
As you walk out from the concourse you see how steep the stand is which when you are at the back of it gives you a very good view of the playing action. The game saw both teams cancelling each other out. A few minutes before half time Brighton's Jamie Murphy hit the back of the net only for it to be offside. Which was also the case in the second half when team mate Tomer Hemed also found the net, but the goal was disallowed.
There wasn't much of an atmosphere created by the Preston fans even if they did have a drum and also that they hadn't turned up in great numbers. The facilities at the ground were what you would expect from a ground in the Championship, we didn't have a massive following so it was easy to move around the concourse and get to the toilets.
After the game we got straight back on the coach that was parked outside the away end, once everyone was back on the coach we made our way home. Again we stopped at Warwick services for around half an hour. Like the journey up it was mostly on the motorway and I got back home to Eastbourne at around pm. Although the game was a draw, it was a good day out overall, another ground ticked off my list and I can now look forward to MK Dons away. In the two years I had spent up at college in Preston Myerscough College which is about 8 miles outside of Preston and also the College attended by Anthony Pilkington of Cardiff City I had not once visited Deepdale to watch a match.
When the date was announced, I decided that I would be going to watch this one. It also gave me the opportunity to meet up with a few friends and reminisce about my time at Myerscough. I travelled up to Preston the day before the match to avoid having to get up ridiculously early.
As for finding the ground on the day, I got on the Bus at Bilsborrow and got off at Moor Park, with the ground on the other side of the park. I stayed at Guy's Thatched Hamlet in Bilsborrow, which is only a stones throw away from my old college and enjoyed a few drinks the night before and a nice lunch of Tomato Soup, Lasagne both the best I've ever had and a mug of tea, on the Saturday before catching the bus to Moor Park.
From the outside Deepdale it looked as if they'd used rather a lot of sheet metal, but run out before they finished it. I think it's fair to say that Deepdale isn't the prettiest of football grounds you'll ever see. I met my friend outside the ground and then we went inside. Three of the stands were of the same height and quite steep, and you get a good view of the game as a result. The other stand with the dugouts looked unfinished and rather poor, which was a shame.
We brought just over up from the south coast and we were making all of the noise! The Preston fans were quiet for most of the first and second half which surprised me. Towards the end of the second half they perked up a bit and made it seem a bit more uncomfortable, but to be honest, there wasn't really much to cheer for them or us up until that point, it was a rather dull draw which was probably a good result in the end, as North End aren't a bad side in this division.
I had no problems getting out of the ground and I walked back to Preston Railway Station with my friend and had a bit of a chat about the game amongst other things, before going back to Guy's and meeting with a couple of other friends. I enjoyed it very much. I'm glad I went and if we don't go up this year I will be going back again next year, hopefully to see us win! Why were you looking forward to this game and visiting the Deepdale football ground?
I've been to Preston several times over the past four decades, first time was when the great Nobby Stiles was the Preston manager and Rangers had Clive Allen up front for the R's…. Wouldn't say I was particularly looking forward to the game, no more than any other Rangers game up north, but I was looking forward to seeing how the grounds refurbishment had progressed since my last visit which was about three years previous to this one. Not a difficult journey from West London this time, always advisable to check if Liverpool and the Manchester clubs have a home games as this will add to traffic congestion on the M6… No problems this time, roughly four hours driving in total to Preston.
Couldn't really see any pubs or restaurants within walking distance of Deepdale, but there is a large Sainsbury's only a five minute walk from the away end with a decent cafe within the store. Very handy for a pre-match light lunch after the long motorway drive. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impressions of away end then other sides of the Deepdale football ground? Deepdale is very impressive now it's completed, that is all but the executive boxes situated to the left of the away stand which I can only guess will be finished should Preston gain promotion.
The away stand is a mirror image of the home end, the way this stand is structured made for very good acoustics from the traveling QPR support.
I really like Deepdale, they've got it right for football by refurbishing the old ground, unlike many of the new purpose built stadiums which are soulless and devoid of atmosphere. A decent game of football between two good Championship sides…you never know what your going to get, or which QPR team will actually turn up on the day, which is why we all love the beautiful game so much. As Rangers scored very early in the first half our support was buoyant throughout this encounter, Preston equalised in the 92nd minute, and I have to say a score draw was just about the right result.
Can't pass comment on the food outlets as I didn't partake, can only assume from the volume of our support using the kiosks that the food and beer were up to the usual standards. The match stewards and police were helpful and friendly, this is how it should be at every football ground…. Have to mention a really nice touch by Preston, there were posters of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink inside the ground, for Rangers fans to take home that thanked us for making the round trip of mile trip to support our club….
This was the only downside to the whole day, it takes an age to getaway from Deepdale, there is a large retail park near the ground, that retail traffic mixed with the football traffic make for a nightmare exit to the motorway.
I enjoyed my day at Preston, the home supporters were friendly and I look forward to the corresponding fixture next season. One last point, I have to mention the Preston supporter in the stand to our right, who was wearing a turban on his head.
He continued, even at one nil down, to wave a Union Flag throughout the whole match and was sporting a very long white distinguished beard. If every football supporter put as much visual and vocal encouragement into supporting their team, then grounds would be full to the rafters…. Again, if this fella doesn't get Preston supporter of the season, then the vote must be fixed….
Why were you looking forward to this game and visiting the Deepdale Football Ground? My brother and I were in England from the United States. We are both Everton supporters but we had a day in Manchester and as we were close, we decided to go up to Preston for the game.
Very easy from Manchester Picccadilly. We took the train up to Preston then took a cheap taxi to Deepdale. There's a pub next to Preston Railway Station so we had a pint there before heading to the stadium. The home fans were friendly but as they were playing Burnley so a lot of them were agitated to say the least. What you thought on seeing the ground, first impr essions of away end then other sides of the Deepdale Football Ground?
The stadium looks great inside and out. The away end was rocking as Burnley are going up and they brought 6, supporters. Burnley scored early and won the game, so the away end didn't stop singing for 90 minutes. The atmosphere itself was incredible. It was great to take in a Championship level match and see how the second tier is.
Had a pie which was good and I think around three pounds, was not too expensive. I had a great time at this though I wish the home team could have won or at least scored.
If you are ever in the North of England, Deepdale is definitely worth your time to visit! The final game of the season is always an opportunity to let your hair down and a number of supporters were in fancy dress while many others brought inflatables to throw about. The good mood and a large away support about 5, meant that there would be good atmosphere. Took the train from Manchester airport having flown in from Ireland straight to Preston and it took just about 50 minutes to get there.
From the station it takes about 20 minutes to walk to Deepdale,. Went to the pub at the top of the station sorry forget the name Its friendly to away supporters and had a great atmosphere. Deepdale is impressively redeveloped! Looked like a new ground. Great view from behind the goal, and great atmosphere. The only unusual thing is the builders were obviously worried about the floodlights falling down. I mean why use one pylon to hold them up when you can use 10!
One of our supporters had brought a surf board with him and surfed the crowd in the second half which was more entertaining than anything happening on the pitch! Easy enough. The Police pretty well escorted everyone back to the railway station where trains were waiting. The pubs were unable to distract us by being closed! We were out of there not by choice in an hour. Enjoyable day out. The few home fans I met, the stewards and the Police were all very helpful and friendly.
Would happily go back. Although it was still early in the season Barnsley were third from top and Preston were third from the bottom. Also this would be the first time I have visited Deepdale, plus I would be amongst 2, away supporters and therefore I was really looking forward to the game.
The Deepdale Ground was very easy to find. I found a pub called "The Sumners" which was only ten minutes drive from the M6. Deepdale was only another ten minutes walk and straight in at the away end of the stadium called the "Bill Shankly Kop". My daughter accompanied me to the game and so we had a drink in the pub along with dozens more Barnsley fans. The majority of which were watching the Man Utd v Man City game on television. I didn't notice many home fans in the pub so the atmosphere was really good.
The stadium looked really good and very modern. The away fans were all together behind the goals in the Bill Shankly Kop End. We had really good seats about half way up the Stands and so had a great view.
I was very impressed with Deepdale. The whole match was very entertaining with both teams starting off well, and Barnsley taking a lead going in at half time. In the second half Preston began to create the more chances and so deserved their equaliser with a great 20 yard goal.
However Barnsley came back at them and scored a great winner eight minutes from the end. The final score being to Barnsley. There was no problem at all in getting away from the ground, back to the pub car park and then an easy getaway. It was a very enjoyable day out especially for all the travelling Barnsley fans and getting a good away win to consolidate our league position. Why were you looking forward to this game and visiting the Deepdale ground itself?
I had previously visited Deepdale in the 's and not been back since — I wanted to see how the ground had been re-developed. Also as my son is at University in Preston, it gave me the chance to see him too! Very easy although we arrived in Preston early so probably missed any 'football traffic'.
The ground is well sign-posted and is easy to find. I parked near the University and walked to the Deepdale Ground taking 20 minutes. We went to a Wetherspoon's pub in the town centre which welcomed away fans, no problems and everybody seemed to mix well. Deepdale looks very impressive from the outside with a nice statue of Sir Tom Finney.
The away end had good sight lines and although we were towards the back, we still had a good view. The other sides were good, with murals of Alan Kelly and Tom Finney pictured within the seating which was a nice touch.
Stewards were friendly and helpful, atmosphere good mainly due to visiting fans of which there were 5,! I suppose the only 'good' thing about being relegated is that you get to go to new grounds you've never been to before. Deepdale being such a ground. I was particularly interested in seeing the mosaic faces on the seats. As we travel from North Wales to nearly every Villa game, this was easy. Straight up the M6, come off for Preston and follow signs for Deepdale.
We had a walk around the ground, had a look in the Club Shop and then made our way to the away entrance. I have to say outside the ground that I have never seen a floodlight structure like it. I cannot work out if it is a thing of beauty or a monstrosity! When we first went to check out our seats the stadium was virtually empty.
I always find this is the best time to take in a football ground. The face mosaics are a brilliant idea and very impressive, as are three other sides of Deepdale. I felt that the Invincibles Stand let down the rest of the ground, mainly due to what looked like a lot of wasted space along the very top of the stand, which I thought really spoilt the look of it. But on the whole Deepdale is a nice little ground.
What an awful display by Villa resulting in two defensive mistakes and a defeat, which resulted in being the last game in charge for Roberto Di Matteo. I felt very sorry for Preston to be honest as their home support was attendance-wise shocking with empty seat across all 3 home stands.
We however took 5, fans who made a lot of noise throughout the game, and more so at the end as our team was booed off the pitch for such an awful display. We got out of the car park pretty quickly but had about a 15 minute wait in the traffic lights opposite the ground while Police hand signalled traffic through.
After that we were away, no problems, and back on the M6 south. A nice and relaxed day out and if we are in the same division next season I will have no hesitation on going back to Deepdale.
We are currently doing well so nearby away games are tempting. Deepdale was my first ever away march as 9 year old in when the pitch was almost square. I visited again in the early eighties. Was easy to find with good instructions from this website. Good car park next to Sainsbury's around the corner from the Sumners pub.
Went into Sumners for a quick pint. As it was a night match there wasn't much time for anything else however the food there looked excellent. Deepdale is a very nice compact stadium. Vastly different from my two previous visits. Away end has a brilliant view and plenty of leg room. Also decent pies at half time. Our end was almost full and as the Sky reporter said our fans were relentless so couldn't hear the Preston fans at all even though we got thrashed and deservedly so.
It was very easy getting away from the ground. There wasn't a big crowd around 12, so not really many queues.
Apart from getting a puncture on the M62 after the game, it was a decent evening apart from result. I have a soft spot for Preston as it's where my grandmother is laid to rest and it was my first ever away ground.
I was looking forward to visiting Deepdale as it is always exciting to visit a ground that you've never been to before.
The journey from Sheffield was a comfortable one as not many people were on the road early in the morning on New Year's Eve. We stopped off at nearby Chorley first for a few pre-match drinks as this was suggested by one of the lads who had been to Preston before. Chorley is a nice little place with a few pubs and eating places I would definitely recommend it.
Our minibus driver parked in the local retail park close to the ground as parking is very minimal near the ground of what we could see. Deepdale did have that traditional ground feel, walking to the ground in between local houses with both sets of fans rather than a industrial estate or in the middle of nowhere which has become the norm with the newer stadiums.
When inside the ground the concourse was big and spacious but was hard to manoeuvre in this case as Wednesday had brought close to 5, fans. I was slightly disappointed with the size of Deepdale I knew it wasn't the biggest ground but I certainly thought it would be bigger than it was.
The game itself was poor from a Wednesday perspective, the first half was even. However in the second half Preston came out of the blocks and were much the better side creating some really good chances.
They eventually broke the deadlock on 78 minutes when a cross was deflected into the Wednesday goal. They continued to press and hit the post shortly after and I was convinced this was not our day and we wouldn't be getting anything fro m this game cause quite frankly we didn't deserve anything. But in the 95th minute Adam Reach popped up to smash home a Wednesday equaliser which caused jubilant scenes in the Wednesday end and I was delighted that we had managed to salvage a point after a terrible performance and the game finished In terms of the catering facilities I couldn't comment cause I didn't purchase anything but other facilities such as toilets etc were fine.
Getting away from the ground after the game was a bit of a nightmare. It's a one way in and one way out road to the ground so it took us at least 30 minutes to get out of Preston itself but once we were out we were fine and managed to get home okay.
Overall great day out made even better with a last minute equaliser. I will certainly be visiting Deepdale Preston again in the future! A two hour train journey followed by a 45 minute walk to the ground passing Preston Prison on the way. With Wolves flying high at the top of the League, every game is something to look forward to. The season is just starting to reach its critical stage when Winter begins to turn to Spring, and with just 14 games left, Wolves were travelling to Deepdale hoping to at least maintain, if not extend, their point gap from second placed Aston Villa.
All three previous games had finished as draws, including two utterly dreadful 's. I was cautiously optimistic of seeing my first Wolves win here though, and travelled in good spirits, along with 5, other members of the Wolves faithful. Not in the same car though, obviously…. I was on driver duty for this one, and having collected the rest of our travelling party, we set off for Preston at just after 11am. The M6 gods were kind to us, for a change, and we had a relatively pain free, stress free drive through Staffordshire and into Lancashire.
Certainly, less stressful than the occupants of a Citroen we passed, which was on fire on the hard shoulder just outside Bamber Bridge. We parked at a local School, which is very close to Deepdale itself. The ground is well signposted from the nearby streets, and like a lot of grounds, the floodlights are visible, rising high above the surrounding houses. By the time we had parked up and walked to Deepdale, it was after 1pm, giving us a couple of hours before kick-off. We had been advised by Wolves that we should get to the ground early, and as turnstiles were opening at pm, we decided not to visit any pubs, and head into the ground once it was open.
We went into the ground and went straight to the bar. What impressed me was that they had already got what looked like a hundred pints already poured and ready, presumably in anticipation of the thirsty Wolves fans entering the ground en masse.
A really good idea, and something a few clubs could certainly do with copying! As I was hungry, I also indulged in a famous local delicacy, and let me tell you, I was glad I did!
Without playing to type, the pies tend to be off a really good quality in this part of the world, and Preston is no different. I really like Deepdale as a ground. The away end is a single-tiered stand, with no obstructed views, and a really good view of the pitch. The concourse is spacious and well laid out. Backed by a raucous away following, Wolves started the game by having plenty of possession, without doing a great deal with it.
Ruben Neves, known as the Kevin De Bruyne of the Championship mainly by me, it must be said was having another excellent game in the Wolves midfield, and he went close to breaking the deadlock, when his first-time volley from a half-cleared corner whizzed over the bar.
At the other end, John Ruddy could have spent much of the first half 10 feet behind him, in the away end. He had very little to do, aside from a couple of crosses which he caught easily. Preston came closest when Alan Browne headed wide from an unmarked position just before half time. If the first half was tame and tepid, the second half was anything but.
Then, Matt Doherty made a terrific block to deny Darrell Fisher the Preston right back, with Doherty deflecting the shot over the bar for a corner. Unfortunately, the respite was only temporary, as Preston scored from the corner, Browne again finding himself unmarked at the far post, and this time he made no mistake, nodding the ball past Ruddy and into the net.
The game really changed on the hour mark, in a crazy two or three-minute spell which sums up the Championship. From another Preston attack, Big Willy Boly in Wolves defence made a great interception and played the ball out to Cavaleiro. The winger looked to break, but was brought down by John Welsh, the Preston midfield enforcer.
Less than a minute later, it was A great break from Cavaleiro again saw him burst past three or four tame challenges, before sliding the ball through to Helder Costa. The winger still had lots to do, but once he had forced the ball past the last defender, he coolly slid the ball into the far corner, bringing pandemonium to the away end.
After this, it was all Wolves. The atmosphere was decent, but not amazing. The away end was packed, and very noisy, but the three home stands were half full at my guess. There was a large gathering of home support which congregated next to the away end to the left, but they appeared to have an average age of about 17, and I would guess their average IQ would be a similar figure….
Stewards were very helpful, the pre and post-match music was great Oasis and The Stone Roses, you beauty! My only gripe, and I have this a lot, is that it took quite a while for the stand to empty at the end of the game. The programme was well made and put together and had lots of information about Wolves. It was a 5-minute walk back to the car at full time, and it took a little while to get off the car park and back onto the main road.
Once we were, the traffic was a little slow getting back to the M55, but from there it was another relatively smooth journey home. I got back to my house at around , so two and a half hours after getting back into the car at full time, so definitely no complaints on that front! A decent point on the road from a competitive game, if not a classic. It took us a point closer to our promotion target, and as Villa lost, it increased our lead over them.
The views from the stands are great, the facilities are good, and you can really get a decent atmosphere going in the away end. For the record Deepdale would be my 78th ground watching the Albion. Very easy. I came by train from London. It was a very pleasant stroll through town from the station to the ground.
I went to two very good pubs. A friendly place.
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