It wouldn't be pre-season at Preston North End without the short trips to Iron Gate and Victory Park to take on Bamber Bridge and Chorley respectively.
Thus, the time has come for Alan Irvine to send two squads to both grounds for what will be the Lilywhites' first run out back in England.
Striker Chris Brown will be looking to build on his hat-trick he picked up against Austrian minnows FC Hallein 04 as well fellow strikers Jon Parkin and Neil Mellor who will see these games as an ideal time to get into the habit of scoring goals.
It will also be a chance for North End fans to see the likes of Neal Trotman, Michael Hart, Liam Chilvers and goalkeeper Wayne Henderson in action for the first time in many months who will be champing at the bit after long layoffs.
Previous Meetings
Last summer's visit to Iron Gate didn't exactly go to plan and it wasn't for a last minute Richard Chaplow goal that saved Preston's blushes, the outing would have been a total disaster.
Preston's visit to Chorley last summer saw North End retain the Jack Kirkland Trophy after goals from Neil Mellor and new boy Barry Nicholson sealed a two goal win.
Although North End recorded wins last time out, the Preston supporters will be goal thirsty and wanting to see more convincing performances this time round.
Team News
During the FC Hallein 04 game, Alan Irvine did his best to field two different 11's in each half. Whether he is likely to separate the sides in a similar fashion or mix up the teams remains to be seen.
Those teams were:
PNE First Half: Lonergan, Hart, Chilvers, St. Ledger, Davidson, Mayor, Carter, McKenna, Wallace, Brown, Mellor.
PNE Second Half: Henderson, Jones, Trotman, Chilvers, Nolan, Sedgwick, Nicholson, Carter, Mayor, Parkin, Hawley.
Regardless of which team ends up where, it is most likely that the senior players will be spread out evenly giving the younger players in the squad a chance to impress; most notably Danny Mayor who has been catching the eye of those who follow the reserve team on a regular basis.