Preston North End Vs Derby County Match Preview
Coca-Cola Championship Tuesday 8th December 2009
Another defeat on the road leaves North End perilously close to slipping further down the table towards the obscurity of lower-mid table and within sight for those fighting it out at the wrong head. However, if the Lilywhites’ fortunes are going to change then is stands to reason that it is most likely to happen at home under the ‘Tuesday night lights’ phenomenon which has served Preston well over the years.
Nigel Clough’s Derby County are the latest team to come up against North End under the aforementioned lights on a Tuesday who themselves will be hoping they are looking upwards and not down come full time. The Rams are currently lying in 17th place, four points behind North End who, with a win, could be back within touching distance of the playoffs.
Form
Preston Home Form: LLDDDL
Derby Away Form: LLDLLL
Previous Meetings
Last season North End faced Derby County three times, the first of which came in the League Cup in August 2008. The Lilywhites were left feeling sheepish after an underwhelming performance saw them crash out of the Carling Cup at just the second stage. Paul Green scored the only goal of the game five minutes before half time to see the Rams through to the 3rd Round.
The second of the three game at Pride Park in November last year where North End had to settle for a point, despite going a goal down and going in front midway through the first half. Former Leeds striker Robert Hulse put the home side ahead after just eight minutes before Callum Davidson equalised from the penalty spot in typical fashion. The, a stunning Neil Mellor strike saw the Lilywhites take the lead only to see Jordan Stewart peg North End back almost immediately with a speculative long range effort.
The Rams’ last visit to Deepdale, however, wasn’t a successful one. On Boxing Day 2008, North End pulled no punches to record a 2-0 win thanks to goals from the recently departed Sean St Ledger as well as a second half strike from Jon Parkin.
The Rams’ last 6 trips to Deepdale
|
2008/2009 |
Fri 26 Dec |
Preston N.E. |
2 - 0 |
Derby County |
Championship |
|
|
Tue 26 Aug |
Preston N.E. |
0 - 1 |
Derby County |
League Cup |
|
2006/2007 |
Mon 01 Jan |
Preston N.E. |
1 - 2 |
Derby County |
Championship |
|
2005/2006 |
Mon 08 Aug |
Preston N.E. |
1 - 1 |
Derby County |
Championship |
|
2004/2005 |
Sun 15 May |
Preston N.E. |
2 - 0 |
Derby County |
Football League Play-Offs (Lvl 2) |
|
|
Sat 27 Nov |
Preston N.E. |
3 - 0 |
Derby County |
Championship |
Team News
With no new injury setbacks for Preston, the only absentees in the North End camp are midfielder Barry Nicholson and defender You Mawene who are both out with long term injuries.
For the Rams, former Blackpool defender Shaun Barker has been ruled out of the trip to Deepdale due to a thigh injury.