Preston North End Vs Brentford Match Preview
Npower League One Tuesday 27th March 2012
Venue: Deepdale
Kick Off: 19:45
Referee: James Adcock (click here for referee statistics)
Form:
Preston North End: DDLWDD
Brentford: LWLLLW
With a small minority of Graham Westley’s men seemingly not having heard the phrase “play to the whistle”, the Lilywhites found themselves on the end of a dramatic late equaliser at the weekend.
Heading into the final of the three added on minutes Bury’s Lateef Elford-Alliyu had the simplest of finishes to salvage a draw for the Shakers, much to the delight of their travelling faithful.
The result meant gaffer Graham Westley was unable to add to his solitary home win since taking over the Deepdale hot seat, something he will be hoping to rectify come Tuesday night.
Tuesday see’s the visit of Brentford, a side who once had playoff aspirations but after run of three straight defeats prior to their win over Rochdale at the weekend, find themselves cut adrift in mid-table mediocrity.
A win for North End could see the Lilywhites move into the top half which, surely, must now be the aim with little else to play for.
Previous Meetings (Click here for head-to-head statistics)
When the Lilywhites went up against the Bees earlier in the campaign they were on a run of five consecutive wins in all competitions with the victory at Griffin Park being their sixth on the spin.
A clinical North End ran out 3-1 winners with Neil Mellor bagging a brace either side of an Iain Hume strike.
Niall McGinn had levelled for Brentford.
Prior to September the last time North End and Brentford went head-to-head was during the 1999/2000 Division Two (League One) Championship winning season.
The game at Deepdale took place on 23rd October 1999 which saw North End come from behind to win.
Gavin Mahon put the Bees ahead with just four minutes on the clock before Graham Alexander levelled from the penalty spot on the stroke over the hour-mark.
A fortuitous Scott Marshall own goal with just three minutes left to play saw David Moyes’ side run out 2-1 winners.
Team News
Midfielder Barry Nicholson is ruled out with a hamstring injury and could be out for up to six weeks.
The former Aberdeen man lasted just 18 minutes against Bury before pulling up.
Meanwhile, Neil Mellor will be looking to build on his impressive 10 minutes against Bury with a more prolonged period on the Deepdale pitch as the former Liverpool man looks to return to full fitness.
For the visitors, on-loan midfielder Adam Forshaw will definitely miss out with a broken jaw suffered during the win over Rochdale on Saturday.
Former Coventry and Birmingham striker Clinton Morrison will be looking for his first start since joining on loan from the Owls.
Played for Both, click here