Westley had described Notts County as a side who would come with a 4-6-0 formation before kick off. He was wrong, they did play with one man up front befitting of how they have obtained so many points on the road this season.
Preston are authors of their own downfall after thrashing both highly rated Swindon and Hartelpool by four and five goals respectively earlier in the season every team has since come to defend satisfied with a point.
County were no different and Preston lacked the guile to break them open although they did have chances. Beavon was the main culprit in a first half in which North End dominated.
The striker latched on to a mistake by the keeper, rounded him and then hesitated before shooting. This allowed two County players to get back on the line with one blocking the shot and clearing.
The visitors did not venture forward int he first half but for all of Preston's possessiont hey could not find the killer touch. An early goal is always needed at Deepdale these days and once it did not arrive it was going to be a long night.
The second half was a better match purely because County opened up and came forward. That and Lee Hughes who always seems to score against us came on as a second half substitute.
As it was neither side could break the deadlock and the game looked to be petering out int he four added minutes of stoppage time. Or so we all thought.
Preston looked like having one final attack with Laird down by the opposition corner flag preparing to corss. Campbell-Rice who was booed when he came on lunged in to Laird with his foot clearly above the ball. Hehad no intention of going for the ball and was given an immediate red which started a mass scuffle.
The game ended goalless but sadly Laird suffered a broken leg. The horror could be seen around the ground let alone the sound of the tackle. Hopefully the left back will be back sooner rather than later and we should be grateful that we have an able deputy in Buchanan.
Preston need to find a way around teams who sit back. Let's not forget these teams who sit back are above us in the table. Preston are progressing but are still missing a few pieces of the jigsaw.